Excel Hack — How to extract the first name and last name from email without formulas in 30 seconds

Extract first name and last name from email

There are times when a list of email addresses is given and we would need to extract the first name and last name out of it. I was guilty of jumping straight into formulas like TextSplit() until I learnt a function in Excel called Flash Fill. As its name suggests, this excel function fills one’s desired output in a flash.

Let’s jump in straight to see how Flash Fill works

(1) Input a sample of the desired outcome that you would like to have in the first name and last name column

(2) Select the first empty cell in the first name column and hit Ctrl + E or Data-> Flash Fill

Data Tab-> Flash Fill

Wait for excel flash fill to perform its ‘magic’ 🪄

(3) Perform Step (2) for the Last Name column

And..we are done in 30 seconds🥳🥳🥳

What is the flash fill function?

The flash fill function automatically fills data when it identifies a pattern in your desired output. It can extract text and numbers from a single column or join text from multiple columns into one. It is a useful function that will save you time at work if you are looking to extract or join text/numbers.

Hope you find this useful and see you in the next article!