Google Sheets - Formatting Number Entries
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Number entries can be easily formatted within Google Sheets. In fact, if you know how you want the entries formatted prior to entering the data, you can even pre-format the cells so that the formatting occurs as you enter data!
Options on the Formatting Toolbar:
The most common formatting options are found right on the Formatting Toolbar -
Here you can easily change a number to currency or a percentage, establish the number of decimals desired, and access the formatting menu.
There are actually two locations you can see the menu options for formatting - under the Format Menu and selecting Number, in addition to the formatting toolbar when clicking the "123" icon -
The menu has many of the most popular formats, but notice at the bottom there is even a choice for More Formats where you can explore additional currency and date/time formats, or even create a custom format.
Number as Text:
If you want the entry to be a text entry rather than a number, the option of Plain text is near the top -
Just remember that any numbers that are formatted to Plain text CANNOT be used in a numerical-based formula elsewhere.
Needing a Leading Zero:
You can keep a leading ZERO (0) in a cell by first inserting an apostrophe -
When you click on ENTER/RETURN/TAB, the apostrophe will not show but the ZERO will remain-