Excel silently classifies everything you type. Knowing the type explains why a value aligns left or right — and why some "numbers" won't add up.
Columns of numeric and text data in a spreadsheet
| Type | Example | Default alignment |
|---|---|---|
| Text | Product Name | Left |
| Number | 1250.5 | Right |
| Date/Time | 2026-06-15 | Right |
| Boolean | TRUE / FALSE | Center |
| Error | #DIV/0! | Center |
Quick check: if a value sits on the left, Excel thinks it's text; on the right, it's a number or date. Numbers stored as text are a top cause of broken formulas.
Excel stores dates as serial numbers counting days from Jan 1, 1900 (day 1).
2026-06-15 → 46188 (the 46,188th day)
This is why you can subtract dates to get the number of days between them:
1=B2-A2 → days between two datesA green triangle in a cell's corner warns that a number is stored as text. To fix:
| Action | Shortcut |
|---|---|
| Confirm & move down | Enter |
| Confirm & move right | Tab |
| Edit the active cell | F2 |
| Fill selection with same value | type, then CtrlEnter |
| Insert today's date | Ctrl+; |
| Start a new line inside a cell | AltEnter |