How to Format a Phone Number in a Numbers Spreadsheet

By Foye Robinson

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A spreadsheet is an application that includes rows and columns of cells, allowing you to insert, manage and analyze data. Microsoft Excel, OpenOffice Calc and EditGrid are some examples of spreadsheet applications. When you insert a number into a spreadsheet, you can instruct your spreadsheet to format it in a certain way. You can format a single cell or multiple cells containing phone numbers or other types of data.

Microsoft Excel

Select the cell containing the phone number you want to format.

Click on "Format" and "Cells" in the toolbar in Excel 2003. In Excel 2007, select the "Home" tab and expand "Number Format." Choose "More Number Formats" from the bottom of the list.

Select the "Number" tab and the "Special" category. Select "Phone Number" from "Type" and press "OK."

OpenOffice Calc

Select the cell containing the phone number. Select "Format" and "Cells" from the toolbar.

Go to the "Numbers" tab and choose "User-defined" from "Category."

Go to the "Format code" text box and type in the phone number format you want to use. To display the phone number with the (123) 456-7890 format, type (000) 000-0000. To display the format as 123-456-7890, type the format as 000-000-0000. Press "OK."

EditGrid

Choose "Format" and "Number Formatting" from the toolbar.

Select "Custom" from the "Number Format" dialog box.

Go to the "Format Code" dialog box and type in the format that you want to use, whether it's 123-456-7890 or (123) 456-7890. Press "OK." The format will be applied to the selected cell or cells.

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