Free YEAR Formula Generator — Extract Year from Dates | Excel
Returns the year of a date, an integer in the range 1900-9999.
Common Errors & Fixes
#VALUE! error
Causes:- The input is text that Excel cannot interpret as a date.
- The cell contains an error value.
Fixes:- Use DATEVALUE() to convert text dates.
- Ensure the cell contains a valid date, not a string.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is YEAR returning a strange 4-digit number?
Excel stores dates as serial numbers. YEAR correctly converts them. If YEAR returns something like 1905, the cell likely contains a serial number instead of a formatted date.
Can YEAR extract the year from a text date?
Only if the text is recognized as a valid date format by Excel. For text dates, use DATEVALUE() first: =YEAR(DATEVALUE(A1)).
What is the difference between YEAR and YEARFRAC?
YEAR extracts the year portion of a date. YEARFRAC calculates the fraction of a year between two dates, useful for age or tenure calculations.
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