Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024, and Excel in Microsoft 365. If you are using an earlier version (Excel 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Excel, click here: Delimited Text-to-Columns in a Macro.

Delimited Text-to-Columns in a Macro

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated April 19, 2025)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024, and Excel in Microsoft 365


One of the handiest features in Excel is the Text to Columns feature, which allows you to easily split cell contents into individual cells according to any criteria you specify. One method of using the feature is to allow it to recognize characters within the cells and use those characters to trigger where the split should take place. This type of splitting is referred to as a delimited split.

You may be wondering how you can perform a delimited text-to-columns operation in a macro you may be writing. This is easy enough to do by using the TextToColumns method on a selection you set up. Consider the following very simple macro:

Sub ExampleSplit1()
    Selection.TextToColumns _
      Destination:=Range("A2"), _
      DataType:=xlDelimited, _
      TextQualifier:=xlDoubleQuote, _
      ConsecutiveDelimiter:=False, _
      Tab:=True, _
      Semicolon:=False, _
      Comma:=False, _
      Space:=False, _
      Other:=True, _
      OtherChar:="-"
End Sub

Notice all the variables that you can set for the TextToColumns method. Most of these variables are only necessary because this is a delimited split; the variables set what is used as a delimiter by the method. Beginning with the Tab line, the variables correspond directly to the settings you would make in Step 2 of the Convert Text to Columns Wizard, if you were manually using the feature. You can set Tab, Semicolon, Comma, and Space to either True or False, depending on whether you want that character used as a delimiter.

You can also set the Other variable to True or False, depending on whether you want to have a "user defined" delimiter. If you set it to True, then you should set the OtherChar variable equal to the character you want used as a delimiter.

If you use the TextToColumns method multiple times in the same macro, the only thing you need to do on invocations subsequent to the first is to change variables that differ from the previous invocation. For instance, let's say that you are calling the method twice in the same macro, and the first time you want the split to be on an instance of the dash character, but the second you want it to be on any instance of a lowercase x. You can put the macro together like this:

Sub ExampleSplit2()
    Dim objRange1 As Range
    Dim objRange2 As Range

    'Set up the ranges
    Set objRange1 = Range("A2:A20")
    Set objRange2 = Range("A21:A35")

    'Do the first parse
    objRange1.TextToColumns _
      Destination:=Range("A2"), _
      DataType:=xlDelimited, _
      Tab:=False, _
      Semicolon:=False, _
      Comma:=False, _
      Space:=False, _
      Other:=True, _
      OtherChar:="-"

    'Do the second parse
    objRange2.TextToColumns _
      Destination:=Range("A21"), _
      DataType:=xlDelimited, _
      OtherChar:="x"
End Sub

Note:

If you would like to know how to use the macros described on this page (or on any other page on the ExcelTips sites), I've prepared a special page that includes helpful information. Click here to open that special page in a new browser tab.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (8317) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024, and Excel in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Excel here: Delimited Text-to-Columns in a Macro.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Getting Page Number Formatting Changes to Stick

Placing a page number into your document can be easy. Getting that page number to look the way you want it to can be more ...

Discover More

Unwanted Strikethrough Formatting

Enter something in a cell, and you may be surprised by how the information is displayed. If you are surprised, then the ...

Discover More

Breaking Up Variable-Length Part Numbers

Part numbers can often be long, made up of other component elements. Breaking up part numbers into individual components ...

Discover More

Best-Selling VBA Tutorial for Beginners Take your Excel knowledge to the next level. With a little background in VBA programming, you can go well beyond basic spreadsheets and functions. Use macros to reduce errors, save time, and integrate with other Microsoft applications. Fully updated for the latest version of Office 365. Check out Microsoft 365 Excel VBA Programming For Dummies today!

More ExcelTips (ribbon)

Converting Numbers to Strings

When creating macros, it is often necessary to change from one type of data to another. Here's how you can change from a ...

Discover More

Pulling Apart Characters in a Long String

You can easily use formulas to pull apart text stored in a cell. For instance, if you need to pull individual characters ...

Discover More

Getting a File Name

Does your macro need to allow the user to specify a particular file name that should be used by the macro? Here's a quick ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 7 - 3?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


This Site

Got a version of Excel that uses the ribbon interface (Excel 2007 or later)? This site is for you! If you use an earlier version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the menu interface.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.