In Excel: use =MONTH(A2), =YEAR(A2) and =DAY(A2) to pull the three parts out of a date — each returns a NUMBER, so January is 1, not "Jan".
Syntax
Arguments
| Argument | Description | |
|---|---|---|
serial_number | required | The date to read the part from — a cell holding a real date, not text that looks like one. |
Related functions
Confirm the column really holds dates — right-aligned by default, and =ISNUMBER(A2) returns TRUE.
Use =MONTH(A2), =YEAR(A2) or =DAY(A2) for the numeric part.
For a name rather than a number, use =TEXT(A2,"mmmm") or "mmm"; remember the result is text.
For a sortable month-and-year key, use =TEXT(A2,"yyyy-mm") rather than joining two numbers.
For grouping in a PivotTable or on a chart axis, =EOMONTH(A2,-1)+1 gives a real date at the month start.
If you get #VALUE!, the cell is text: fix it with DATEVALUE or Data ▸ Text to Columns before extracting anything.
What this does
These three read one component out of a date serial number. MONTH returns 1–12, DAY returns 1–31, YEAR returns the four-digit year. The single most common surprise is that MONTH returns a number: to get a month NAME you need =TEXT(A2, "mmmm") for January or "mmm" for Jan, and TEXT returns text, so the result sorts alphabetically rather than chronologically. That is why a report grouped by month name usually runs April, August, December unless the sort is done on the month number and only the display uses TEXT. The second thing worth knowing is that a "month and year" grouping key should not be built by concatenating MONTH and YEAR — =TEXT(A2,"yyyy-mm") gives a key that sorts correctly, and =EOMONTH(A2,0) gives a real date you can chart on a time axis. Finally, these functions need a genuine date: fed text like "03/04/2026" they return #VALUE!, which is the fastest way to discover an imported column never became dates at all. The same idea underpins a lot of everyday Excel work, so the few minutes spent getting it right here pay back across every sheet you build afterwards. Treat it as a pattern, not a one-off, and it stops being something you look up and starts being something you reach for. The difference between a quick fix and a sheet you can trust is the extra minute you spend validating “excel return month from date”. Start on a copy or a tiny sample, keep the affected cells visible, and compare the result with the tool above before you touch the real workbook. When a formula is involved, keep the inputs labelled beside it, reference cells instead of typing values, and apply number formatting only after the result checks out. The point is a workflow that saves repeating the same clicks every week, but the practical win is that someone else can open the file and understand what happened without asking you.
A worked example
A2 holds 2026-08-14. =MONTH(A2) → 8, =YEAR(A2) → 2026, =DAY(A2) → 14. For a label rather than a number, =TEXT(A2,"mmmm") → August. For a grouping key that sorts properly, =TEXT(A2,"yyyy-mm") → 2026-08. To collapse a whole column to month starts for a PivotTable or chart, =EOMONTH(A2,-1)+1 → 2026-08-01. Almost every monthly report starts by splitting a date column into parts, and the two traps — numbers rather than names, and text keys that sort alphabetically — account for most of the wrong-looking summaries that follow. If there is any chance you will reuse this, drop it into a small template tab right now: a labelled input area on the left and the formula beside it, checked once against the tool above. Next time the same question comes up, the answer is a single paste away instead of a rebuild from memory.
In Google Sheets
Everything above works in Google Sheets too. Excel and Sheets share the formula syntax used here; only the surrounding menus are arranged differently. That portability is deliberate — learn it once and it follows you between the two tools and across Windows and Mac. Nothing on this page is behind a login: the tool runs entirely in your browser, the formula is shown in full with one-click copy, and the steps work the same on Windows and Mac. That is the whole promise here — the exact answer, a way to prove it on your own numbers, and just enough context to make it stick. The short version of “excel return month from date”: the answer is at the top of this page, the tool proves it on your own numbers, and the sections above explain why it holds so the next variation does not stump you. Excel rewards people who reference cells instead of typing values and who keep inputs separate from formulas, because that is what makes a result you can audit months later. Build it once, deliberately, with the live tool as a check, and you convert a one-off lookup into a reusable skill — which is the whole point of learning the why and not just the what.
Common mistakes
- Expecting MONTH to return "August" — it returns 8, and the name needs TEXT.
- Sorting or grouping on a TEXT month name, which orders April, August, December instead of chronologically.
- Building a month-year key as MONTH&YEAR, which makes 12026 for December and sorts nonsensically.
- Running these against text that merely looks like a date and reading
#VALUE!as a formula problem rather than a data problem. - Using
=YEAR(TODAY())-YEAR(B2)as an age, which is wrong by up to a year —DATEDIFwith "y" is the correct tool.
Frequently asked questions
How do I get the month from a date in Excel?
=MONTH(A2) returns the month number, 1 to 12. For the name, use =TEXT(A2,"mmmm") or "mmm".
How do I extract the year from a date?
=YEAR(A2) returns the four-digit year as a number.
How do I get month and year together?
=TEXT(A2,"yyyy-mm") gives a key that sorts correctly, and =EOMONTH(A2,-1)+1 gives a real date at the start of the month for charts and PivotTables.
How do I turn a month number into a month name?
=TEXT(DATE(2026, A2, 1), "mmmm") — build any date in that month and format it. The result is text.
Why does MONTH return #VALUE!?
The cell holds text rather than a date. Check with =ISNUMBER(A2) and convert with DATEVALUE or Data ▸ Text to Columns.
Other ways people ask this
On the way here you may have searched this as “excel return month name from date” and “how to return month from date in excel” — it is all the same task, and this page is the single, complete answer to it.
Why do people search for this in so many different ways?
Because the same task has many names. “excel return month name from date”, “how to return month from date in excel” all point at the one operation explained on this page, which is why they all lead here.