SPLIT function in Google Sheets - Cheat Sheet & Quick Revision

Recall & Review

beginner

What does the SPLIT function do in Google Sheets?

The SPLIT function divides text into separate parts based on a chosen separator, placing each part into its own cell.

beginner

Syntax of SPLIT function?

SPLIT(text, delimiter, [split_by_each], [remove_empty_text])<br><br> - text: The text to split.<br> - delimiter: The character(s) to split by.<br> - split_by_each (optional): TRUE splits by each character in delimiter, FALSE treats delimiter as whole.<br> - remove_empty_text (optional): TRUE removes empty cells from results.

beginner

What happens if you use SPLIT("apple,banana,orange", ",")?

The text "apple,banana,orange" is split at each comma, resulting in three cells: "apple" | "banana" | "orange".

intermediate

How does the optional parameter split_by_each affect SPLIT?

If split_by_each is TRUE (default), SPLIT breaks text at each character in the delimiter string.<br>If FALSE, SPLIT looks for the whole delimiter string to split by.

intermediate

What does the remove_empty_text parameter do in SPLIT?

If remove_empty_text is TRUE (default), empty cells created by consecutive delimiters are removed.<br>If FALSE, empty cells appear where delimiters are next to each other.

What is the correct way to split the text "red|green|blue" into separate cells using SPLIT?

A SPLIT("red|green|blue", "|")

B SPLIT("red|green|blue", ",")

C SPLIT("red|green|blue", " ")

D SPLIT("red|green|blue")

The delimiter is the pipe character "|", so you must specify it as the second argument.

If you use SPLIT("a--b--c", "--", FALSE), what will happen?

A Text does not split at all.

B Text splits at each '-' character.

C Text splits at the whole "--" string.

D An error occurs.

With split_by_each set to FALSE, SPLIT looks for the whole delimiter "--" to split the text.

What does SPLIT("one,,three", ",", TRUE, FALSE) return?

A one | , | three

B one | three

C one,,three

D one | (empty) | three

remove_empty_text is FALSE, so empty cells from consecutive commas are kept.

Which parameter controls whether SPLIT treats the delimiter as a whole or as separate characters?

A split_by_each

B delimiter

C text

D remove_empty_text

The split_by_each parameter controls how the delimiter is interpreted.

What is the default value of remove_empty_text in SPLIT?

A No default

B TRUE

C Depends on delimiter

D FALSE

By default, SPLIT removes empty text cells created by consecutive delimiters.

Explain how to use the SPLIT function to separate a list of names separated by semicolons into individual cells.

Think about what character separates the names and how SPLIT uses that.

Describe the effect of the split_by_each and remove_empty_text parameters in the SPLIT function.

Consider how splitting changes if delimiter is treated as whole or by each character, and what happens with consecutive delimiters.