Google Spreadsheet Day of Week Functions and Formulas

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Google Spreadsheets offer a variety of functions and formulas to help you work with dates and days of the week.

The WEEKDAY function allows you to return a number representing the day of the week, ranging from 1 (Sunday) to 7 (Saturday).

You can use this function to create a simple formula that displays the day of the week for a specific date. For example, if you enter the date "2022-07-25" into a cell, the WEEKDAY function would return the number 1, indicating that it's a Sunday.

The DAY function, on the other hand, returns the day of the month for a given date.

Date and Time Functions

Date and Time Functions are a crucial part of Google Spreadsheets, allowing you to extract specific information from dates.

You can use the WEEKDAY function to determine the day of the week for a given date. For example, if you use =WEEKDAY(DATE(2024, 11, 26), 1), it will return 3, indicating Tuesday.

Credit: youtube.com, Get Day of the Week | WEEKDAY Function in Google Sheets

The WEEKDAY function has three types of numbering systems, which determine how the days of the week are numbered. Type 1 numbers Sunday as 1 through Saturday as 7, Type 2 numbers Monday as 1 through Sunday as 7, and Type 3 numbers Monday as 0 through Sunday as 6.

Here's a brief summary of the WEEKDAY function's types:

You can also use the WEEKNUM function to determine the week number of the year for a date. For example, if you use =WEEKNUM(DATE(2024, 11, 24), 1), it will return 48, indicating the 48th week of the year.

Weekday(date)

The WEEKDAY function is a handy tool in Google Sheets that helps you determine the day of the week for a given date.

You can use the WEEKDAY function to get the day of the week as a number, where Sunday is 1 and Saturday is 7. For example, if you have a date in cell A1, you can use the formula =WEEKDAY(A1, 1) to get the day of the week as a number.

Credit: youtube.com, Excel: How to Show the Day of the Week for a Date - Weekday Function

The WEEKDAY function also has an optional type argument that determines the numbering system. If you set type to 2, Monday will be 1 and Sunday will be 7. This can be useful if you're working with data that uses a different numbering system.

Here are some examples of how you can use the WEEKDAY function with different type arguments:

First Day of Month

The first day of the month is an important date to know, and there are two ways to calculate it using date and time functions.

Using the DATE function, you can get the first day of the month by using the formula =DATE(YEAR(date), MONTH(date), 1).

If you prefer to use the EOMONTH function, you can get the first day of the month by getting the last day of the previous month and adding one, using the formula =EOMONTH(date, -1) + 1.

Here's a quick reference to help you remember the formulas:

  • DATE function: =DATE(YEAR(date), MONTH(date), 1)
  • EOMONTH function: =EOMONTH(date, -1) + 1

Apply Custom Formatting

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To show the date as the day of the week, you can change the formatting in Google Sheets. This method doesn't pull the result of the day of the week into any other cell or formula, it just changes how the spreadsheet displays the data within a cell.

Select the cell or range you want to change, go up to the Format menu, and go to Number because Sheets stores valid dates as numbers. Then, go to Custom date and time.

You can use the Custom date and time menu to show the day format as two numbers, but we want to show the day as a word. Click on the Day selector, and change it to show the full name of the day.

Here are some examples of how to format the day of the week:

For example, if you want to show the date as "Monday, January 1", you would use the format "dddd, mmmm d".

Extracting and Counting

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You can extract the day of the week from a date value using the TEXT function. This function formats a number into text, making it easy to pull out the day of the week.

The TEXT function takes two inputs: the cell range with the date value and the format. Surround the format value with quotes, like "DDDD", to return the full day of the week.

For example, if you have a date value in cell A1, you can use the TEXT function in cell B1 to return the day of the week. Simply enter the formula =TEXT(A1, "DDDD") and press enter to see the result.

Extract Technique

Extracting the day of the week from a date value is a useful technique.

You can use the TEXT function to achieve this, taking a number and formatting it into text. The function will pull the day of the week out of the date value and return it in another cell.

The TEXT function requires two inputs: the cell range where the date is, and the format. Remember to surround the format value with quotes, like "DDDD".

Using "DDDD" as the format will output the full day of the week, such as Tuesday.

Count Days

Calendar with Deadline Reminder
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Counting days can be a straightforward process, especially when working with dates that are close together.

To count the number of days between two dates, you can simply subtract the earlier date from the later date. This is exactly what we did in the "Date Difference" example, where we counted 5 days between January 1st and January 6th.

Counting days can also be useful for scheduling purposes, such as planning a vacation or a meeting. The "Date Range" example showed how to count the number of days in a specific range, including weekends and holidays.

The COUNT function in Excel can also be used to count the number of days in a date range. This function is particularly useful when working with large datasets and can save a lot of time and effort.

Syntax

The WEEKDAY function in Google Sheets is a powerful tool for determining the day of the week. It takes two arguments: date and type.

Credit: youtube.com, How to Use the WEEKDAY Function in Google Sheets

The date argument is required and must be a reference to a cell containing a date, a function returning a date type, or a number. This is the date for which you want to determine the day of the week.

The type argument is optional and defaults to 1 if not specified. It's a number indicating which numbering system to use to represent weekdays. By default, it counts starting with Sunday = 1.

Here's a quick rundown of the WEEKDAY function's syntax:

  • date - The date for which to determine the day of the week.
  • type - [OPTIONAL - 1 by default] - A number indicating which numbering system to use to represent weekdays.

Note that the type argument is optional, so you can simply omit it if you want to use the default numbering system.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I autofill days of the week in Google Sheets?

To autofill days of the week in Google Sheets, simply enter the first day in a cell and drag the fill handle while holding down the right mouse button. Then, release the button and select "Fill weekdays" from the context menu.

How to convert dd mm yyyy to day of week?

To convert a date in the format dd mm yyyy to a day of the week, simply enter the date into a cell and press enter to apply the formula. This will dynamically calculate the corresponding day of the week.

Ismael Anderson

Lead Writer

Ismael Anderson is a seasoned writer with a passion for crafting informative and engaging content. With a focus on technical topics, he has established himself as a reliable source for readers seeking in-depth knowledge on complex subjects. His writing portfolio showcases a range of expertise, including articles on cloud computing and storage solutions, such as AWS S3.

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