How to Count Characters in Excel on PC or Mac

Counting Characters in One Cell

Open the spreadsheet that contains the characters you want to count.

Click an empty cell. This is the cell where the number of characters will appear.

Type =LEN(cell name). Replace “cell name” with name of the cell you want to count. For example, if you want to count the characters in cell C4, the formula should say =LEN(C4)

Press ↵ Enter or ⏎ Return. The number of characters in the cell now replaces the formula.

Counting Characters in Multiple Cells

Open the spreadsheet that contains the characters you want to count.

Click an empty cell. This is the cell where the number of characters will appear.

Type =SUMPRODUCT(LEN(Cell1:Cell2)). Replace “Cell1” with first cell in the range you want to count, and “Cell2” with the last in the range. For example, if you want to count the characters in cells C2 through C51, the formula should say =SUMPRODUCT(LEN(C2:C51))

Press ↵ Enter or ⏎ Return. The number of characters in the specified range now appears in the cell.