VBA Format Function

The Format function in VBA is a built-in function that is used to format a string or numeric expression into a specific format. This function is commonly used in VBA to manipulate how data is displayed or extracted from a cell in Excel. It is an extremely useful function that allows for more efficient data handling and provides more control over the output of a string or numeric expression.

VBA Format Function – Purpose, Syntax and Arguments

Purpose

The Format function is primarily used to format data in a desired way. This can be useful when handling large amounts of data in Excel or when creating reports that require a specific format. For example, the Format function can be used to convert numbers into currency format, dates into specific date formats, and strings into uppercase or lowercase letters. It also allows for padding and spacing within a string or numeric expression, making it easier to read and understand.

Syntax

Format(expression, [format])

Arguments

• expression: This is the value or cell reference that you want to format.
• format: This is an optional argument that specifies the format that you want to apply to the expression. It can be a specific format code or a built-in format specifier (e.g. “Currency” or “Short Date”). If you do not specify a format, the default format will be applied based on the data type of the expression.

Example

Let’s say we have a column of numbers in an Excel sheet and we want to convert them into currency format. We can use the Format function in VBA to do this. In the following example, we will use a loop to go through each cell in the column and apply the currency format using the Format function.

Dim i As Integer
For i = 1 To 10
Cells(i, 1).Value = Format(Cells(i, 1).Value, "Currency")
Next i

In this code, the first two lines define a variable ‘i’ to use in the loop, and the loop goes through 10 cells in the first column (column A). The Format function is used to convert the value in each cell (Cells(i, 1).Value) into currency format. The second argument “Currency” specifies the format we want to apply. Running this code will convert all the numbers in the column to currency format, with the currency symbol and appropriate decimal places.

Remarks

• The Format function can be used with any data type, including dates, strings, and numbers. However, not all formats are valid for each data type. For example, a currency format cannot be applied to a string value.
• The Format function also has a few built-in format specifiers, such as “Currency” and “Percent”. These can be used instead of specific format codes for ease of use. For example, instead of using “0.00%”, you can use “Percent” to format a number as a percentage.
• The Format function is especially useful when combined with other functions, such as the ‘Left’ or ‘Right’ function, to manipulate strings into a desired format.
• It is important to note that the Format function only changes the display of the expression, it does not change the underlying value. This means that if the data is used in calculations, the original value will be used, not the formatted value. If you want to change the underlying value, you can use the ‘Val’ function to convert the formatted value back to its original data type.

Important Notes

• When specifying a custom format code, it must be enclosed in double quotation marks “”.
• You can use the Format function in VBA to format data in any Microsoft Office application, not just Excel. This includes Word, Access, and PowerPoint.
• The Format function can also be used in Excel formulas, but the syntax is slightly different. In formulas, the Format function is entered as ‘TEXT(value, format)’, where the value is the cell reference or value and the format is the desired format.

Understanding VBA Format Function with Examples

VBA (Visual Basic for Applications) is a programming language used in Microsoft Excel, Access, Word, and other Office applications for creating macros to automate tasks and customize user interfaces. The Format function in VBA is used to return a formatted string based on a specified format expression. It is a very useful function and can be used in a variety of scenarios. In this blog post, we will explore the Format function in detail and understand its various uses with examples.

Formatting Numbers

The Format function can be used to format numbers in a specific way. This is particularly useful when dealing with large numbers or monetary values. The format expression for numbers in VBA is “0.00” where the number of zeros represents the number of decimal places.

Dim num As Double
num = 123456.789
Dim formattedNum As String
formattedNum = Format(num, "0.00")
MsgBox formattedNum

1. In this example, we have declared a variable ‘num’ and assigned it a value of 123456.789.
2. Next, we have declared a variable ‘formattedNum’ of type String and used the Format function to format the value of ‘num’ with two decimal places.
3. The formatted value is then assigned to the variable ‘formattedNum’.
4. Finally, a message box is displayed with the formatted number as the result.

The output of this code will be “123456.79” as it rounds off the number to two decimal places.

Formatting Dates

The Format function can also be used to format dates in a particular way. This is useful when dealing with different date formats or when converting dates to strings. The format expression for dates in VBA is “mm/dd/yyyy” where “mm” represents the month, “dd” represents the day, and “yyyy” represents the year.

Dim date As Date
date = Date
Dim formattedDate As String
formattedDate = Format(date, "mm/dd/yyyy")
MsgBox formattedDate

1. In this example, we have declared a variable ‘date’ and assigned it the current date using the ‘Date’ function.
2. Next, we have declared a variable ‘formattedDate’ of type String and used the Format function to format the date in the desired format.
3. The formatted date is then assigned to the variable ‘formattedDate’.
4. Finally, a message box is displayed with the formatted date as the result.

The output of this code will be the current date in the format “mm/dd/yyyy”.

Formatting Text

The Format function can also be used to format text in a specific way. This is useful when dealing with strings that need to be formatted before being displayed. The format expression for text in VBA is “Uppercase” or “Lowercase” where “Uppercase” will convert the entire string to uppercase and “Lowercase” will convert the entire string to lowercase.

Dim text As String
text = "hello world"
Dim formattedText As String
formattedText = Format(text, ">")
MsgBox formattedText

1. In this example, we have declared a variable ‘text’ and assigned it the string “hello world”.
2. Next, we have declared a variable ‘formattedText’ of type String and used the Format function to convert the string to uppercase.
3. The formatted string is then assigned to the variable ‘formattedText’.
4. Finally, a message box is displayed with the formatted text as the result.

The output of this code will be “HELLO WORLD” as it converts the entire string to uppercase.

Formatting Phone Numbers

The Format function can also be used to format phone numbers in a specific way. This is particularly useful when dealing with phone numbers from different countries or when displaying phone numbers in a specific format. The format expression for phone numbers in VBA is “###-###-####” where “#” represents a number.

Dim phoneNumber As String
phoneNumber = "1234567890"
Dim formattedPhoneNumber As String
formattedPhoneNumber = Format(phoneNumber, "###-###-####")
MsgBox formattedPhoneNumber

1. In this example, we have declared a variable ‘phoneNumber’ and assigned it the string “1234567890”.
2. Next, we have declared a variable ‘formattedPhoneNumber’ of type String and used the Format function to format the phone number in the desired format.
3. The formatted phone number is then assigned to the variable ‘formattedPhoneNumber’.
4. Finally, a message box is displayed with the formatted phone number as the result.

The output of this code will be “123-456-7890” as it formats the phone number in the specified format.

Custom Format Expression

Apart from the built-in format expressions, the Format function in VBA also allows for custom format expressions. This gives us the flexibility to format values in any way we want. Let’s see an example of formatting a percentage value using a custom format expression.

Dim percentage As Double
percentage = 0.45
Dim formattedPercentage As String
formattedPercentage = Format(percentage, "0.##%")
MsgBox formattedPercentage

1. In this example, we have declared a variable ‘percentage’ and assigned it the value 0.45.
2. Next, we have declared a variable ‘formattedPercentage’ of type String and used the Format function to format the percentage value with two decimal places and a percent sign at the end.
3. The formatted value is then assigned to the variable ‘formattedPercentage’.
4. Finally, a message box is displayed with the formatted percentage as the result.

The output of this code will be “45%”.

Conclusion

In this blog post, we have explored the Format function in detail and learned how to use it for formatting numbers, dates, text, and phone numbers in VBA. We have also seen how to use custom format expressions to format values in any way we want. The Format function is a very useful tool in VBA and can save us a lot of time and effort in coding. It is important to understand its various uses and practice using it with different examples.