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ISTEXT Function

The ISTEXT function in Excel is used to check whether a value is text. It returns TRUE when the value is a text string and FALSE for numbers, logical values, dates, errors, and blank cells. This function is useful for auditing columns that should hold one data type, for catching numbers that were imported as text, and for guarding text functions against arguments they cannot process.

Key Features of ISTEXT:

  • Returns TRUE only when the value genuinely is a text string.
  • Returns FALSE for numbers, including numbers formatted to look like text, and for logical values, dates, times, and errors.
  • Returns TRUE for an empty string "", which is text of zero length — this is not the same as a blank cell.
  • Returns FALSE for a truly blank cell, where ISBLANK returns TRUE.
  • Applied to a range, it evaluates each cell individually and returns an array of results.

Syntax:

ISTEXT(value)
  • value: The value or expression you want to test. Typically a cell reference or formula result.

How ISTEXT Works:

  1. ISTEXT evaluates the provided value or expression.
  2. If the result is a text string — including a zero-length one — it returns TRUE.
  3. For every other data type — number, logical, date, time, error, or blank — it returns FALSE.

No type coercion happens. ISTEXT asks what the value is, not what it could be converted to, which is exactly what makes it useful for finding numbers stored as text.

Examples:

1. A Text Value:

If A1 contains "Hello": 

=ISTEXT(A1)

Result: 

TRUE

2. A Number:

If A1 contains 42: 

=ISTEXT(A1)

Result: 

FALSE

3. A Number Stored as Text:

If A1 contains the text "42" rather than the number: 

=ISTEXT(A1)

Result: 

TRUE (this is how you find numbers that were imported as text)

4. An Empty String:

=ISTEXT("")

Result: 

TRUE (a zero-length string is still text)

5. A Blank Cell:

If A1 is empty: 

=ISTEXT(A1)

Result: 

FALSE (an empty cell holds no value at all, so ISBLANK is TRUE here instead)

6. A Logical Value:

=ISTEXT(TRUE)

Result: 

FALSE (TRUE is a logical value, not the text "TRUE")

7. Guarding a Calculation:

=IF(ISTEXT(A1), "Enter a number", A1 * 1.2)

Result: 

Prompts for correct input instead of failing when A1 holds text

8. Counting Text Cells in a Range:

=SUMPRODUCT(--ISTEXT(A1:A10))

Result: 

Returns the number of cells in A1:A10 that hold text

Notes:

  • ISTEXT distinguishes types, it does not convert them. ISTEXT("42") is TRUE even though "42"*1 evaluates to 42.
  • The empty string is the main point of confusion: ISTEXT("") is TRUE while ISTEXT(<empty cell>) is FALSE. A formula returning "" therefore produces a cell that ISTEXT calls text and ISBLANK calls non-blank.
  • If the argument evaluates to an error, ISTEXT returns FALSE rather than propagating the error, so ISTEXT(FIND("x",A1)) is safe to use directly.
  • ISNONTEXT is the exact negation of ISTEXT — it returns TRUE for everything ISTEXT returns FALSE for, blank cells included.
  • TYPE returns 2 for exactly the values that ISTEXT returns TRUE for, so ISTEXT(A1) and TYPE(A1)=2 are equivalent.
  • ISTEXT is part of the IS family of information functions (ISBLANK, ISERR, ISERROR, ISEVEN, ISLOGICAL, ISNA, ISNONTEXT, ISNUMBER, ISODD, ISTEXT, etc.).

Applications:

  • Import Auditing: Find numeric columns where some values arrived as text and will not sum correctly.
  • Data Cleaning: Flag cells needing conversion before a VLOOKUP fails on a type mismatch.
  • Input Validation: Confirm that a name or code field really holds text before concatenating it.
  • Type Auditing: Combine with ISNUMBER and ISLOGICAL to classify every cell in a mixed-type column.
  • Conditional Formatting: Highlight cells whose type does not match the expected schema.
  • ISNONTEXT: Returns TRUE if the value is anything other than text — the exact negation.
  • ISNUMBER: Returns TRUE if the value is a number.
  • ISBLANK: Returns TRUE if the cell is empty.
  • ISLOGICAL: Returns TRUE if the value is a logical value.
  • TYPE: Returns a numeric code indicating the data type of a value — 2 for text.
  • N: Converts a value to a number — text becomes 0.

Tip: A column that will not sum is almost always a ISTEXT problem. Drop =SUMPRODUCT(--ISTEXT(A1:A1000)) next to it: if the count is anything but zero, some of those "numbers" are text and need converting before any arithmetic will see them.