How To Separate First and Last Names in Sheets – Guide

There are several ways to split the first and last name in Google Sheets, but one of the easiest is to use a function. This function can be found in the “Tools” tab of the Google Sheets window. The function will divide the given names by first and last name.

How to Separate first and last name in Google Sheets

Using the SPLIT formula

To separate first and last names, you can use this simple method:

  1. Take the first name of the person you are addressing and write it down.
  2. Take the last name of the person you are addressing and write it down.
  3. Put these two pieces of information together and make a list of all the people in your life who have both first and last names.

The data you want to split is the list of names. The column that contains the list of names is C2. The columns where you want to display the separate list are A and B.

Enter the formula. You must enter the formula SPLIT, which is =SPLIT(A1, “”). A1 represents the cell to be split. Apostrophes specify where it should be divided. It’s called a delimiter. Here, there is a space between the apostrophes because the names in column A are separated by a space. If there is a comma separating the two names, you can specify a comma instead of a space. The formula would become =SPLIT(A1, “,”). ..

After typing the formula, press Enter. Now you can see the formula in action. Apply the formula to the column. You can apply the formula to the entire column by dragging the fill handle.

You have successfully applied the SPLIT formula to the entire column.

Google Sheets provides a built-in tool for separating names. However, this tool splits the name in place. The last name moves to the next column and the first name remains in the original column. ..

The data in cell A1 is to be split into two parts. The first part is in cell A2, and the second part is in cell A3. ..

This will open a dropdown menu. Select Columns. This will open a dialog box. In the dialog box, select the number of columns you want to split your text into. Click OK. This will open a dialog box. In the dialog box, select the number of columns you want to split your text into. Click OK. Your text will now be split into columns based on your selection in the dropdown menu and in the dialog box. ..

The drop-down list of tabs in the Separator window lets you choose between two different types of separators: text and images. You can use the text separator to group related text together, or use the image separator to separate images into different folders or files.

The separator can be different depending on the data you are using. For example, if you are using a table, the separator could be a comma, if you are using a list, it could be a semicolon.

Using the Split Names add-on

You can also install the necessary add-on to split the names. ..

Select Get Add-ons from the main menu and click on the Get Add-ons button.

Install the Split Names add-on. Selecting Get Add-ons will open a dialog. Search for division names in the search box. Find the Ablebits Split Names add-on and click on it.

The Split Names add-on can be installed by clicking on the blue Install button. He can ask for access or permission. After successful installation, you will see a message.

Select the range of cells to be split. Identify and select the range of cells with the names you want to separate. ..

The Split Names add-on will help you easily create unique names for your websites.

Customizing Split:

  1. Choose the type of split you want to create: headings, lists, or tables.
  2. Check the “header” checkbox if your data has a header.
  3. If you want to create a table, enter the data in columns and click on the “Create Table” button.
  4. If you want to create a list, enter the data in rows and click on the “Create List” button.

Check whether the add-on was successfully installed. The add-on will show the number of changes made. You can check your data to see changes.

Using text functions.

You can use this method if you only want the first or last name instead of both.

Select the cell that you want to tag. In this example, cell B1 is chosen. Enter the following formula into the selected cell: =B1 ..

The formula for extracting the first name is = LEFT (A1, FIND(””, A1) -1). The formula for extracting the surname is = RIGHT (A1, LEN (A1) -FIND(””, A1)).

Press Enter to see the formula in action. You may get an autocomplete prompt. Press Ctrl + Enter on your keyboard or click on the tick. This will apply the formula to all data present. You have now successfully extracted the last name from your data.

Final note

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