Quoted digits are text
| A | |
|---|---|
| 1 |
Formula: A1: =ISNUMBER("42")
Result: FALSE
The quotation marks make 42 a text, so the answer is FALSE.
Google Sheets function
ISNUMBER in Google Sheets
ISNUMBER with worked examples you can test in the live grid. The argument details are in the Excel guide.
In Google Sheets
The arguments and common errors are covered in the ISNUMBER Excel guide; check the function help in Google Sheets for its own argument list.
Worked examples in Google Sheets
A date is a number
| A | |
|---|---|
| 1 | Date |
| 2 | 3/9/2024 |
Formula: C2: =ISNUMBER(A2)
Result: TRUE
Excel stores dates as serial numbers, so a real date passes the test.
Contains test
| A | |
|---|---|
| 1 | Word |
| 2 | xylophone |
Formula: C2: =ISNUMBER(SEARCH("x",A2))
Result: TRUE
SEARCH returns a position number when x is found, which ISNUMBER turns into TRUE.
Try it
A tiny spreadsheet with example data. Edit the formula or any number and see the result.
Formula in F2: =ISNUMBER(B2)
| A | B | C | D | E | F | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Student | Score | Extra credit | Attempts | Result | |
| 2 | Ann | 92 | Yes | 2 | TRUE | |
| 3 | Bob | 74 | No | 0 | ||
| 4 | Cy | 58 | Yes | 3 | ||
| 5 | Dee | 81 | No | 1 | ||
| 6 | Eli | 66 | 2 |
Result in F2: TRUE
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