LEFT
Returns text from the left side of a text string.
Syntax:
LEFT(text, number)
returns number characters from the left side of the text text.number defaults to 1 if omitted.
Example:
LEFT("output", 3)
Application:
Imagine you have a list of product IDs in a database. Each product ID is structured with a two-letter department code at the beginning, followed by a unique five-digit item number. You need to create a new report that only shows the department code for each product.
Table: Products
Product ID | Product Name | Price | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
A | B | C | ||
1 | EL-10045 | Laptop | $1,200.00 | |
2 | HW-23198 | Hammer | $25.00 | |
3 | EL-56723 | Smartphone | $800.00 | |
4 | FA-89012 | T-Shirt | $20.00 | |
5 | HW-34567 | Screwdriver | $15.00 |
Goal:
Extract the two-letter department code from the ProductID column.
LEFT Function Application:
The formula to achieve this would be LEFT(ProductID, 2).
- ProductID: This is the text string you want to operate on.
- 2: This is the number of characters you want to extract from the left side of the string.
Resulting Table (Using the LEFT function):
Product ID | Product Name | Price | Department Code | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
A | B | C | D | ||
1 | EL-10045 | Laptop | $1,200.00 | EL | |
2 | HW-23198 | Hammer | $25.00 | HW | |
3 | EL-56723 | Smartphone | $800.00 | EL | |
4 | FA-89012 | T-Shirt | $20.00 | FA | |
5 | HW-34567 | Screwdriver | $15.00 | HW |
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