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Text function
REGEXEXTRACT
Extracts text matching a regular expression.
OccasionalDifficulty 1550 · AdvancedUsage rank #232 of 520
When to use it
Pulls the text that matches a regular expression: the first match by default, all matches, or the capture groups.
The shape of it
- Syntax
=REGEXEXTRACT(text, pattern, [return_mode], [case_sensitivity])
Worked examples
First number
=REGEXEXTRACT("Order 12345 shipped","\d+") → 12345
The first run of digits.
All matches
=REGEXEXTRACT("a@x.com, b@y.org","[\w.]+@[\w.]+",1) → {a@x.com, b@y.org}
Mode 1 returns every match.
Capture groups
=REGEXEXTRACT("2025-03-15","(\d+)-(\d+)-(\d+)",2) → {2025, 03, 15}
Mode 2 returns the capture groups.
Worth knowing
- Test the pattern with REGEXTEST first.
- Case-insensitive matching is the last argument.
- Requires Microsoft 365 (2024).
Where it goes wrong
- #N/A when nothing matches.
- Backslashes in patterns do not need doubling in Excel, unlike in code.
Related
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