How to mass convert text to date in Excel?
Supposing you have a list of dates, but these dates are in text format as below screenshot shown, now you want to convert these text dates to real date, how can you quickly solve it? This tutorial is going to tell you the quick tricks to mass convert the texts to dates in Excel.
Convert text to date format with formula
Convert text to date format with Kutools for Excel 
| Feature | DATEVALUE Formula | Kutools for Excel |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Converting standard text dates that Excel can recognize | Quickly converting large ranges or nonstandard date formats |
| Formula required | Yes | No |
| Output location | Requires a helper column for the formula results | Converts the selected cells directly |
| Date formatting required afterward | Yes; returned serial numbers need to be formatted as dates | No additional formula or manual formatting process is required |
| Special text date support | Limited; some special formats may not be converted correctly | Supports more text-date formats, including formats DATEVALUE may fail to recognize |
| Main advantage | Built into Excel and suitable for standard date strings | Faster mass conversion with broader format recognition |
| Main limitation | Requires a formula, helper cells, and additional date formatting | Requires Kutools for Excel |
| Recommended use | Best for occasional conversions of standard text dates | Best for large datasets or mixed and irregular text-date formats |
Convert text to date format with formula
To convert the text to date, you can use formula =DATEVALUE().
1. Select a blank cell next to the text data, then type the formula =DATEVALUE(A2), (A2 is the text data), then press Enter keyand then drag autofill handle down to apply this formula to the cells. See screenshots:
2. Keep selecting the returned digits and right click to select Format Cells from the context menu, and in the Format Cells dialog, under Number tab, select Date, and then select a date type from the right list as you need, see screenshot:
3. Click OK. Now the text dates are converted to dates.
But with the formula =DATEVALUE(), you cannot convert some special text dates to dates, such as Friday, Aug 21,2015, Dec 12,2015 and 5/18/14,13:43. But with below handy tool, you can convert all these texts to dates.
Convert text to date format with Kutools for Excel
If you have Kutools for Excel installed, you can apply its Convert to Date utility to quickly mass convert texts to dates.
After free installing Kutools for Excel, please do as below:
1. Select the text dates you want convert to dates, and click Kutools > Content > Convert to Date, see screenshot:
2. Then a Convert to Date dialog pops out to show how many text dates have been successfully converted to dates. See screenshot:
3. Close the Convert to Date dialog.
Conclusion
Converting text to real Excel dates is important when you need to sort, filter, calculate, or format date values correctly.
Use the DATEVALUE formula when your text dates follow a standard format that Excel can recognize. For larger datasets or nonstandard date strings, Kutools for Excel’s Convert to Date provides a faster way to convert the selected cells directly without helper formulas or additional formatting steps.
Tip: If DATEVALUE returns an error, check whether the text format is recognized by Excel or use a conversion tool that supports more date patterns.
Choose the method based on the consistency of your source dates, the size of your dataset, and whether you prefer a formula-based or direct conversion approach.
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