PlanMaker TEXT Function: Format Numbers into Readable Text
Learn TEXT(Number, Format) in SoftMaker PlanMaker 2026 using decimals, leading zero IDs, percentage displays, labels and format-code cautions.
Verification status: Official documentation referenced; example outcomes independently reasoned or arithmetically checked where stated. Not executed in SoftMaker PlanMaker 2026. How formula examples are checked
Quick answer: =TEXT(42.5,"0.00") is expected to produce the text 42.50 in the English/U.S.-style number notation used by the official examples. The result is text, not the number 42.5 with a changed cell display. SoftMaker documents the exact signature TEXT(Number, Format) and the use of custom number formats. Official PlanMaker 2026 reference.
Verification status: Vendor reference and custom-format specification checked 2026-10-11. Simple examples were independently evaluated using documented format-code rules. No native PlanMaker or Excel execution and no locale/platform-specific output checks were performed; all results below are expected, not observed. This guide contains no genuine or mock application screenshots.
When to use TEXT — and when not to
Use TEXT when a number must be embedded in a human-readable label, a fixed-width identifier display or a dated sentence. Examples include an invoice label with padded digits (00042) or a price summary with a fixed number of decimal places. Text is helpful for display strings, but can hinder later arithmetic. SoftMaker specifically recommends changing a cell’s normal number format instead if you want to keep the value numeric. TEXT guidance; number formatting.
Do not confuse: =TEXT(42,"0000") is expected to yield the string 0042. Merely setting a numeric cell’s custom display format to 0000 can show 0042 while retaining numeric 42 for calculation. Keep your original values in separate cells if calculations will follow.
Syntax and argument order
=TEXT(Number, Format)
| Argument | Required | Type and purpose | Default / important detail |
|---|---|---|---|
Number |
Yes | Numeric value, numeric expression, recognized date value or a cell containing such a value | No default. The official example also supplies a date-like text string; date recognition depends on locale. |
Format |
Yes | A quoted text string containing a valid custom number-format pattern | No default. Patterns use the same format-code syntax as PlanMaker’s custom number formats. |
The official English examples show a comma between arguments, period for decimals and uppercase MM for month. PlanMaker’s custom-format reference explicitly says number-format punctuation follows the computer’s regional settings; some formula locales also use different argument separators. Follow your installed app, not a blindly pasted cross-locale formula. SoftMaker TEXT; custom format rules.
Reproduce a worksheet
In a worksheet configured for English/U.S.-style formatting, enter numeric values in column A and the formulas below into column B. Expected results are text; the independent reasoning comes from SoftMaker’s 0, #, and % format-code definitions and its worked examples.
| A cell: numeric input | Formula in B | Expected text in B | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
A2 = 42.5 |
=TEXT(A2,"0.00") |
42.50 |
Independently checked fixed two digits |
A3 = 7 |
=TEXT(A3,"0000") |
0007 |
Independently checked zero padding |
A4 = 0.25 |
=TEXT(A4,"0%") |
25% |
Independently checked percent ×100 |
A5 = 12 |
=TEXT(A5,"0.0") |
12.0 |
Independently checked zero placeholder |
A6 = 0 |
=TEXT(A6,"000") |
000 |
Independently checked zero padding |
A7 = 2.715 |
=TEXT(A7,"0.00 ""USD""") |
2.72 USD |
Official SoftMaker example, equivalent cell reference |
Enter the values in A2:A7 as numeric values, not copied formulas or quoted text. In B2:B7 enter the respective formula, then compare the string output with the table. A7 is the vendor’s own rounding example, not proof that every intermediate floating-point tie follows the same rounding path; do not extrapolate it into a universal rounding guarantee. 2026 official TEXT examples.
Literal formulas given by SoftMaker
=TEXT("9/25/2018","MM/DD/YY")
=TEXT(2.715,"0.00 ""USD""")
SoftMaker gives 09/25/18 and 2.72 USD as the resulting strings. Because the first relies on recognizing a date-like text input, it is locale-sensitive; a safer cross-locale workbook stores an actual date value and formats it for display. Official TEXT examples.
Format codes that matter
SoftMaker’s custom number-format specification defines the codes used by TEXT:
| Pattern | Meaning | Independently reasoned example |
|---|---|---|
0 |
Display a digit; show zero if a digit is missing | TEXT(7,"000") → text 007 |
# |
Display a digit only if one exists | TEXT(7,"##0") → text 7 |
0.00 |
Force two places after the decimal | TEXT(42.5,"0.00") → text 42.50 |
0% |
Multiply by 100 and display a percent sign | TEXT(0.25,"0%") → text 25% |
MM/DD/YY |
Two-digit month/day/year for dates | Official date example → text 09/25/18 |
""USD"" inside the formula string |
Escape literal double quotes to embed USD in the custom pattern |
Official 2.715 example → 2.72 USD |
The code # suppresses unnecessary leading positions, while 0 fills them. For dates, PlanMaker’s reference marks date/time tokens as case-sensitive: uppercase MM denotes the month, lowercase mm denotes minutes. Do not copy Excel-specific format tokens without checking SoftMaker’s list. A comma or period in a pattern can also have a locale-specific interpretation.
Advanced, practical examples
1. Keep leading zeros in generated order identifiers
Put numeric 42 in A10. Enter:
="INV-"&TEXT(A10,"00000")
Expected string: INV-00042. The prefix uses PlanMaker’s & concatenation operator; the inner TEXT call pads 42 to five digits. This is a presentation identifier, not proof that the underlying numeric 42 originally contained any leading zeros. Keep A10 numeric for calculations. The result is independently reasoned from the format-code rules; no PlanMaker run was performed.
2. Build a fixed-decimal label without corrupting the arithmetic
Put numeric 12.3 in A11 and 3 in B11. In C11 enter =A11*B11 for a numeric total, and in D11 enter:
="Total: "&TEXT(C11,"0.00")
Independent arithmetic gives numeric C11 = 36.9 and expected text D11 = Total: 36.90. Future calculations should reference C11. D11 is intentionally a display label and need not parse as a number in another locale.
3. Render percentages without converting the underlying ratio
Put numeric 0.25 in A12 and use =TEXT(A12,"0%") in B12. The expected output is the text 25%. Keep A12 = 0.25 when multiplying quantities by the ratio. Format-as-percent is not the same as changing a numeric value to 25.
4. Date-labelled reports must use the installed date system
SoftMaker’s official example =TEXT("9/25/2018","MM/DD/YY") gives 09/25/18. For new workbooks, prefer a real date cell (for example A13 set to September 25, 2018 using the application’s date controls) then use =TEXT(A13,"MM/DD/YY"). The same displayed date is expected if the cell is recognized correctly, but locale-specific date entry, workbook date system and import quirks were not natively tested.
Troubleshooting, errors and limits
| Symptom | What to check | Evidence limit |
|---|---|---|
42.5 appears instead of 42.50 |
Did you use quoted format text "0.00", and does the installation use period decimals? |
Format-code documentation explains 0 padding, not every locale’s exact glyphs |
| Your padded ID lost its zeros | Are you examining numeric A10 rather than the TEXT result? Did you use # instead of 0? |
0 versus # is vendor documented |
| The result cannot be added safely | TEXT produces text |
This is expected; calculate from numeric inputs instead |
| Incorrect date or number separators | Check country settings, actual date parsing and whether MM is uppercase |
Regional formatting rules and case sensitivity are official |
| A format pattern yields unexpected output | Copy a simpler supported pattern, for example "0.00", then add one token at a time |
The official reference does not enumerate every malformed-pattern error code |
| A number looks rounded after TEXT | Formatting a string is not evidence that the source number changed | Verify numeric source independently |
Avoid invented errors: the main TEXT reference does not promise one specific #VALUE! or #NUM! result for every invalid format, nonnumeric string or cross-locale date. The precise error output, maximum text length and edge rounding behavior remain native-test items, not documented guarantees.
Versions, locale and Excel compatibility
PlanMaker 2026 and the available PlanMaker 2021 TEXT page both document TEXT(Number, Format) with the same two examples. An exact 2024 reference and individual Windows/macOS/Linux/FreeOffice/mobile runtime behavior were not independently verified in this batch, so identical support across editions is not asserted.
Microsoft Excel TEXT documentation similarly returns formatted text and recommends retaining the original numeric input. This establishes a broad conceptual overlap, not byte-for-byte equivalence for date codes, regional punctuation, nested quotation marks, errors or file conversion. Native .xlsx save/reopen was not performed. In particular, do not substitute Excel’s date/time token list for SoftMaker’s format-code specification without reviewing the differences.
References and further reading
- SoftMaker PlanMaker 2026 — TEXT, accessed 2026-10-11 — signature, required format string, text output, date and literal USD examples.
- SoftMaker PlanMaker 2021 — TEXT, accessed 2026-10-11 — historical syntax/example continuity only.
- SoftMaker PlanMaker 2026 — Structure of a custom number format, accessed 2026-10-11 —
0,#,%, date/time cases, regional punctuation and literal text. - SoftMaker PlanMaker 2026 — Number format, accessed 2026-10-11 — display formatting without converting the underlying number to text.
- SoftMaker PlanMaker 2026 — T, accessed 2026-10-11 — distinguishes text filtering from numeric formatting.
- Microsoft Excel — TEXT function, accessed 2026-10-11 — cross-product comparison, not a PlanMaker authority.
Native edge cases remain untested. No application screenshots are included.