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How to remove leading zeros before decimal point in Excel?

Author Sun Last modified

Here’s an example of a list of decimal numbers where leading zeros need to be removed, as shown in the screenshot below. While it’s possible to delete the zeros manually, doing so for hundreds of numbers can be tedious and time-consuming. In this guide, we’ll explore efficient ways to quickly remove leading zeros in Excel, whether you’re working with numbers or text data.
A screenshot showing a list of decimal numbers with leading zeros before the decimal point removed

Remove leading zeros before decimal using Format Cells

Remove leading zeros from texts using Kutools for Excel with one clickgood idea3


Remove leading zeros before decimal using Format Cells

In Excel, if you want to remove the leading zeros before decimal point, you can apply the Format Cells function.

1. Select the numbers you want to remove the leading zeros before decimal point, and right click to select Format Cells from the context menu. See screenshot:
A screenshot of the Format Cells option in Excel, accessed from the context menu

2. In the Format Cells dialog, under Number tab, click Custom from the Category list, and enter .00 into the Type textbox in the right section. See screenshot:
A screenshot of the Format Cells dialog box with the custom format '.00' applied

Note: .00 indicates to retain two numbers after decimal point, you can change it to .000 or .0000 as you need.

3. Click OK. Now the leading zeros before decimal point have been from the selected numbers.
A screenshot showing decimal numbers without leading zeros after applying the format


Remove leading zeros from texts using Kutools for Excel with one click

But most of the times, you may want to remove the leading zeros from texts as below screenshot shown, have you any quickly tricks to solve it?
A screenshot showing text values with leading zeros to be removed

Here I introduce a handy add in tool – Kutools for Excel, with its Remove Leading Zeros utility, you can remove leading zeros form texts by a click.

Kutools for Excel offers over 300 advanced features to streamline complex tasks, boosting creativity and efficiency. Itegarate with AI capabilities, Kutools automates tasks with precision, making data management effortless. Detailed information of Kutools for Excel...         Free trial...

Select the texts you want to remove the leading zeros from, and click Kutools > Text > Remove Leading Zeros. See screenshot:
A screenshot showing Kutools' Remove Leading Zeros option in Excel

A dialog will appear, showing the number of cells where leading zeros have been removed. Click OK to close the dialog.
A screenshot showing text values without leading zeros after using Kutools

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Demo: Remove leading zeros from texts using Kutools for Excel with one click

 
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