PROPER Formula Generator (2026) — Capitalize Each Word | Free Excel & Sheets

Capitalizes the first letter in each word of a text value.

Generated Formula
=PROPER(text)

Learning Resources

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Common Errors & Fixes

  • Wrong capitalization result

    Causes:
    • PROPER capitalizes every word — including prepositions like "of" or "and".
    • PROPER cannot distinguish proper names from regular words (e.g. "mcdonald" becomes "Mcdonald").
    Fixes:
    • Manually fix small words that should stay lowercase.
    • For complex name capitalization, consider a lookup table or manual correction.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does PROPER handle apostrophes like O'Brien?

PROPER capitalizes the letter after the apostrophe, so O'brien becomes O'Brien. This is actually correct for most Irish and Scottish surnames.

Does PROPER handle mixed case?

Yes, PROPER ignores the original case and capitalizes the first letter of each word, making all other letters lowercase.

Does PROPER work in Google Sheets?

Yes, PROPER works identically in Google Sheets with the same syntax.

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CONCATENATETRIMUPPERLOWERLEFT

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