ExcelExcel 2024+
CHOOSECOLS function in Excel
Returns the specified columns from an array
=CHOOSECOLS(array, col_num1, [col_num2], …)CHOOSECOLS syntax and parameters
Three arguments, two required.
- arrayarrayRequired
- col_num1numberRequired
- col_num2numberRepeating
CHOOSECOLS examples
Formulas you'll actually reuse.
Just Customer, Amount, and Status out of a six-column export:
=CHOOSECOLS(A2:F200, 1, 4, 6)The last column wherever it sits — negative indexes count from the right:
=CHOOSECOLS(A2:F200, -1)
CHOOSECOLS in Google Sheets
Same name — your formula ports as-is.
Try CHOOSECOLS in the playground
Edit the example — nothing to install.
Preloaded with the CHOOSECOLS formula from Example 1 — change anything and watch it respond.
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CHOOSECOLS errors
What they mean — and the fixes.
#VALUE!A column number is 0 or beyond the array's width — indexes are 1-based, and negative ones count back from the last column.
Related functions
More ways Excel gets this done.
- ADDRESSReturns a reference as text to a single cell in a worksheetLookupGoogle Sheets
- AREASReturns the number of areas in a referenceLookupNo Google Sheets equivalent
- CHOOSEChooses a value from a list of valuesLookupGoogle Sheets
- CHOOSEROWSReturns the specified rows from an arrayLookupGoogle Sheets
- COLUMNReturns the column number of a referenceLookupGoogle Sheets
- COLUMNSReturns the number of columns in a referenceLookupGoogle Sheets