Compact mode

COLUMN vs CONCATENATE vs FORMULATEXT

Table of content

Basic Classification Comparison
Usage Context Comparison
Basic Information Comparison
History Comparison
Facts Comparison

Usage Information Comparison
Technical Details Comparison
Evaluation Comparison
Ratings Comparison

Basic Classification Comparison

Function Category 📊

Primary classification of the Excel function based on its main purpose and usage domain, helps users quickly identify function types

COLUMN

Lookup & Reference

COLUMN belongs to the Lookup & Reference category. Excel functions for searching and referencing data across spreadsheets Click to see all.

CONCATENATE

Text

CONCATENATE belongs to the Text category. Excel functions for manipulating and analyzing text data Click to see all.

FORMULATEXT

Information

FORMULATEXT belongs to the Information category. Excel functions that provide information about cells and data Click to see all.
Operation Type 🔧

Fundamental type of operation or action that the Excel function performs on its inputs

COLUMN

Information

COLUMN performs Information operations. Functions that focus on retrieving and displaying data in various formats Click to see all.

CONCATENATE

Manipulation

CONCATENATE performs Manipulation operations. Functions that modify and transform data in different ways Click to see all.

FORMULATEXT

Information

FORMULATEXT performs Information operations. Functions that focus on retrieving and displaying data in various formats Click to see all.

Usage Context Comparison

For whom 👥

Target user groups who would benefit most from using this Excel function

For all*

Data Analysts

Excel functions specifically designed for data analysis and interpretation

COLUMN

Programmers

COLUMN is designed for Programmers. Excel functions useful for programming and automation tasks Click to see all.

CONCATENATE

Administrative Staff

CONCATENATE is designed for Administrative Staff. Excel functions useful for administrative tasks and data management Click to see all.

FORMULATEXT

Students

FORMULATEXT is designed for Students. Excel functions helpful for academic work and learning Click to see all.
Purpose 📝

Primary purposes and use cases of the Excel function

COLUMN

Data Analysis

COLUMN is used for Data Analysis. Functions specifically designed for analyzing data Click to see all.

CONCATENATE

Text Manipulation

CONCATENATE is used for Text Manipulation. Excel functions that modify and format text content Click to see all.

FORMULATEXT

Data Analysis

FORMULATEXT is used for Data Analysis. Functions specifically designed for analyzing data Click to see all.

Text Manipulation

FORMULATEXT is used for Text Manipulation. Excel functions that modify and format text content Click to see all.

Basic Information Comparison

Known For ⭐

Distinctive characteristic or primary strength of the Excel function

COLUMN

Column Number Retrieval

COLUMN is known for Column Number Retrieval.

CONCATENATE

Text Joining

CONCATENATE is known for Text Joining.

FORMULATEXT

Formula Inspection

FORMULATEXT is known for Formula Inspection.

History Comparison

Creation Date 📅

Original release date of the Excel function

COLUMN

Excel 2.0

COLUMN was created in Excel 2.0. Functions introduced in the Excel 2.0 version release Click to see all.

CONCATENATE

Excel 95

CONCATENATE was created in Excel 95. Functions that came with Excel 95 release Click to see all.

FORMULATEXT

Excel 2013

FORMULATEXT was created in Excel 2013. Functions added in the Excel 2013 release Click to see all.
Created By 👤

Organization or team responsible for developing the function

For all*

Microsoft Excel Team

Functions officially created by the Microsoft Excel development team

Facts Comparison

Interesting Fact 💡

Unique or lesser-known information about the Excel function

COLUMN

Essential for column calculations

CONCATENATE

Predecessor to &

FORMULATEXT

Popular among Excel trainers
Sarcastic Fact 🤣

Humorous or ironic observation about the Excel function

COLUMN

The vertical cousin of ROW function

CONCATENATE

Making text joining unnecessarily formal

FORMULATEXT

The formula whisperer

Usage Information Comparison

Formula Complexity Level 📖

Indicates the difficulty level and complexity of using the Excel function effectively

For all*

Simple

Basic Excel functions for common calculations and tasks

Technical Details Comparison

Input Data Type 📝

Types of data that the Excel function accepts as input parameters

COLUMN

Range

COLUMN accepts Range as input data. Excel functions that operate on cell ranges and data sets Click to see all.

CONCATENATE

Text

CONCATENATE accepts Text as input data. Excel functions specifically designed for text manipulation Click to see all.

FORMULATEXT

Text

FORMULATEXT accepts Text as input data. Excel functions specifically designed for text manipulation Click to see all.
Version Compatibility 💻

Indicates which Excel versions and platforms the function is compatible with < including Office 365< Excel 2019< 2016< etc.

For all*

Excel 2019

Excel functions that work specifically in Excel 2019 version
Excel 2016

Excel functions that work specifically in Excel 2016 version
Excel 2013

Excel functions that work specifically in Excel 2013 version

CONCATENATE

Microsoft 365

CONCATENATE is compatible with Microsoft 365 Excel functions optimized for the latest Microsoft 365 platform Click to see all.

Excel Online

CONCATENATE is compatible with Excel Online Excel functions optimized for use in the web-based Excel Online platform Click to see all.
Operating System 💾

Specifies the operating systems where the function can be used < including Windows< macOS< and web platforms

For all*

Windows

Excel functions optimized for Windows operating system
MacOS

Excel functions optimized for MacOS users
Web Excel

Excel functions available in web-based versions
Required Arguments Count 🔢

Number of mandatory arguments needed for the function to work properly

COLUMN

~
CONCATENATE

2

CONCATENATE needs 2 required arguments Click to see all.

FORMULATEXT

1

FORMULATEXT needs 1 required arguments Click to see all.
Required Arguments Type 📊

The data types accepted as valid input arguments for the function

COLUMN

Range

COLUMN accepts Range as input types Excel functions that operate on cell ranges for calculations Click to see all.

CONCATENATE

Text

CONCATENATE accepts Text as input types Excel functions specialized in text string manipulation and processing Click to see all.

FORMULATEXT

Range

FORMULATEXT accepts Range as input types Excel functions that operate on cell ranges for calculations Click to see all.

Evaluation Comparison

Pros ✅

Key advantages and strengths of the Excel function

COLUMN

No Arguments Needed

Excel functions that work without arguments provide quick results with minimal setup Click to see all.

Consistent Results

CONCATENATE

Simple Text Combining

Clear Syntax

Simple To Use

Flexible Text Combination

FORMULATEXT

Great For Learning

Easy Debugging
Cons ❌

Limitations and potential drawbacks of the Excel function

COLUMN

Limited Functionality

Functions with restricted capabilities, reducing problem-solving options Click to see all.

Basic Output

CONCATENATE

No Automatic Formatting

Functions that don't automatically adjust the format of their output Click to see all.

Limited To Text

Limited To Text Only

Functions that exclusively work with text data and cannot process numbers or dates Click to see all.

No Delimiter Options

FORMULATEXT

Only Works With Formulas

Limited Functionality

Functions with restricted capabilities, reducing problem-solving options Click to see all.

Ratings Comparison

Ease of Use Score 📊

User-rated score for function's ease of use

COLUMN

9.8

User-rated score for function's ease of use (25%) Having high ease of use score means the function is more intuitive and user-friendly. Click to see all.

CONCATENATE

9

User-rated score for function's ease of use (25%) Having high ease of use score means the function is more intuitive and user-friendly. Click to see all.

FORMULATEXT

9

User-rated score for function's ease of use (25%) Having high ease of use score means the function is more intuitive and user-friendly. Click to see all.
Versatility Score 📈

Rating for function's adaptability to different scenarios

COLUMN

5.5

Rating for function's adaptability to different scenarios (25%) Functions with higher versatility scores can be used in more diverse scenarios and applications. Click to see all.

CONCATENATE

7

Rating for function's adaptability to different scenarios (25%) Functions with higher versatility scores can be used in more diverse scenarios and applications. Click to see all.

FORMULATEXT

5.5

Rating for function's adaptability to different scenarios (25%) Functions with higher versatility scores can be used in more diverse scenarios and applications. Click to see all.
Performance Score ⚙

Rating for function's execution speed and efficiency

COLUMN

9.9

Rating for function's execution speed and efficiency (25%) Functions with higher performance scores execute faster and use system resources more efficiently. Click to see all.

CONCATENATE

9.5

Rating for function's execution speed and efficiency (25%) Functions with higher performance scores execute faster and use system resources more efficiently. Click to see all.

FORMULATEXT

9.5

Rating for function's execution speed and efficiency (25%) Functions with higher performance scores execute faster and use system resources more efficiently. Click to see all.
Reliability Score 🛠

Rating for function's consistency and error handling

COLUMN

9.9

Rating for function's consistency and error handling (25%) Functions with higher reliability scores produce more consistent results and handle edge cases better. Click to see all.

CONCATENATE

9

Rating for function's consistency and error handling (25%) Functions with higher reliability scores produce more consistent results and handle edge cases better. Click to see all.

FORMULATEXT

9

Rating for function's consistency and error handling (25%) Functions with higher reliability scores produce more consistent results and handle edge cases better. Click to see all.
Score ⭐

Overall rating combining all scoring attributes

COLUMN

8.8

The overall score for COLUMN is 8.8. Click to see all.

CONCATENATE

8.6

The overall score for CONCATENATE is 8.6. Click to see all.

FORMULATEXT

8.3

The overall score for FORMULATEXT is 8.3. Click to see all.

Alternatives to COLUMN

Known for Row Number Retrieval

Known for Number Validation

🔢 needs fewer arguments than COLUMN

Known for Month Extraction

🔢 needs fewer arguments than COLUMN

Known for Empty Cell Counter

🔢 needs fewer arguments than COLUMN

📈 is more versatile than COLUMN

⭐ is rated higher than COLUMN

Known for Day Extraction

🔢 needs fewer arguments than COLUMN

Known for Counting Numeric Cells

🔢 needs fewer arguments than COLUMN

📈 is more versatile than COLUMN

⭐ is rated higher than COLUMN

Known for Current Date And Time Retrieval

📈 is more versatile than COLUMN

Known for Converting Row Data To Columns

🔢 needs fewer arguments than COLUMN

📈 is more versatile than COLUMN

⭐ is rated higher than COLUMN

Known for Empty Cell Detection

🔢 needs fewer arguments than COLUMN

📈 is more versatile than COLUMN

⭐ is rated higher than COLUMN

Known for Generate Random Numbers

📈 is more versatile than COLUMN