Excel tip: How to use Get & Transform to Merge Columns

The Get and Transform feature of Excel 2016 sounds new, but some of you may know it by its old name, Power Query. You now get the data, and then you transform it, hence the new name.

The Get and Transform feature of Excel 2016 sounds new, but some of you may know it by its old name, Power Query. You now get the data, and then you transform it, hence the new name.

In a spreadsheet, you often see things like ‘First name’ and ‘Last name’ separated into different columns. Follow these steps to use the Get and Transform feature to join columns without using a formula:

  • Under the Query tab to open up the Query editor. (Note: you will only see the Query tab if you have first created a New query under the Data tab.)
  • Select the columns to be transformed.
  • From the Transform tab, select Merge Columns.
  • Select how you would like the data from the columns to be separated, give the new column a name, and click Ok.

There you have it – your columns are joined, and it was much easier than having to use a concatenate formula!

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