Adding a File Path and Filename

Margo wants to insert a file path and filename in an Excel worksheet. She wants to be able to insert the information in either a cell or into the header/footer. This is rather easy to do in Excel.

To insert the file path and filename into a cell, you use the CELL worksheet function in the following manner:

=CELL("filename")

This formula returns the entire path, filename, and tab name of the current worksheet, like this:

E:\My Data\Excel\[Budget.xlsx]Sheet1

If you want to strip out the brackets and the sheet name, you can use the following variation on the formula:

=SUBSTITUTE(LEFT(CELL("filename"),FIND("]",CELL("filename"))-1),"[","")

The LEFT function gets rid of everything from the right bracket to the end of the string, while the SUBSTITUTE function gets rid of the left bracket.

If you are using Excel 2021 or the version of Excel in Microsoft 365, you could also use this formula to get the stripped-down workbook name:

=TEXTAFTER(TEXTBEFORE(CELL("filename"),"]"),"[")

Putting a path and filename into a header or footer is easy:

1. Select the worksheet whose header or footer you want to change.
2. Display the Page Layout tab of the ribbon.
3. Click the small icon at the bottom-right of the Page Setup group. Excel displays the Page Setup dialog box.
4. Make sure the Header/Footer tab is displayed.
5. Click on either the Custom Header or Custom Footer buttons, as desired. Word displays either the Header or Footer dialog box. (See Figure 1.)



Figure 1. The Header dialog box.

6. Position the insertion point in the Left Section, Center Section, or Right Section boxes, as desired.
7. Click on the Insert File Path button. (It looks like a file folder with a piece of paper sticking out.) Excel inserts the following code at the insertion point:

     &[Path]&[File]

8. Click on OK two times to close both dialog boxes.

When you print the worksheet, Excel replaces the codes in step 5 with the path name and the file name of the workbook, respectively.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (11356) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Excel in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Excel here: Adding a File Path and Filename.