The TEXTJOIN function in Google Sheets is a powerful tool for combining text from multiple sources into a single cell, with a customizable delimiter. It simplifies the process of concatenating strings without the need for repetitive formulas, making data management more efficient and organized.

Syntax

TEXTJOIN(delimiter, ignore_empty, text1, [text2, ...])

• delimiter: The character or characters that separate each text string.
• ignore_empty: A boolean value (TRUE or FALSE) that determines whether to ignore empty cells.
• text1: The first text string or range to combine.
• text2: Optional. Additional text strings or ranges to combine. Can include multiple values.

Example #1

TEXTJOIN(", ", TRUE, A1:A3)

This example combines all text from cells A1 to A3, separating them with a comma and a space, while ignoring any empty cells. For instance, if A1 contains “Apple”, A2 contains an empty string, and A3 contains “Banana”, the result would be: Apple, Banana.

Example #2

TEXTJOIN(" - ", FALSE, B1:B5)

In this case, the function concatenates all values in cells B1 to B5, using ” – ” as the separator, including any empty cells. If B1 contains “2023”, B2 contains “Q1”, and B3 is empty, the result will be: 2023 – Q1 – .

Example #3

TEXTJOIN("; ", TRUE, C1, C2, C3)

Here, the function combines the text in cells C1, C2, and C3 with a semicolon and space as the delimiter, ignoring empty cells. So if C1 is “John”, C2 is “Doe”, and C3 is empty, the outcome would be: John; Doe.

Error handling

• VALUE!: This error occurs if the delimiter is not a valid string or if any of the provided text arguments are invalid.
• N/A: This indicates that one or more ranges referenced in the function do not return a value.
• REF!: This error indicates that one of the ranges specified in the function does not exist or has been deleted.

Conclusion

The TEXTJOIN function significantly enhances data handling capabilities in Google Sheets by allowing users to efficiently combine text from various sources with customizable delimiters. Its flexibility in handling empty cells and multiple input ranges makes it an essential tool for anyone looking to maintain organized datasets, streamlining workflows and minimizing errors.