How to detect numbers and dates stored as text in excel
- Step 1Upload your spreadsheet — Drop an .xlsx or .csv. Every text cell is checked for numeric and date patterns.
- Step 2Review the mismatches — A report lists every cell that looks numeric or date-like but is stored as text.
- Step 3Fix in Excel or use the Date Standardizer — Use the cell addresses to manually convert in Excel, or run the Date Standardizer to fix date columns automatically.
Frequently asked questions
Can it automatically convert the mismatches?+
Inspection only in this version. Auto-fix (text-to-number conversion) is on the Pro roadmap.
What patterns count as 'looks like a number'?+
Cells matching the pattern -?[0-9][0-9,]*\.?[0-9]* after stripping commas. Percentages and currencies are not currently detected.
Does it detect dates stored as text?+
Yes. Cells matching common date patterns like YYYY-MM-DD, DD/MM/YYYY, and DD.MM.YYYY are flagged as potential text-stored dates.
Privacy first
Every JAD Excel tool runs entirely in your browser using SheetJS and ExcelJS. Your spreadsheets, formulas, and data never leave your device — verified by zero outbound network requests during processing.