How to☝️ Capitalize First Letters in Google Sheets

To capitalize first letters in Google Sheets, select a blank cell, go to the Formula bar, type the formula =PROPER(A1), and hit Enter

This article will instruct you on how to quickly and easily capitalize letters in various ways in Google Sheets.

Stick around so you don’t miss anything important!

What Are the Default Capitalization Settings in Google Sheets?

When you create a new spreadsheet in Google Sheets, the default capitalization settings are set to Automatic. This means that all cells will be automatically capitalized according to the following rules:

  • Each sentence begins with a capital letter.
  • Proper nouns are capitalized (names of people, places, or things).
  • All other letters are lowercase unless they appear at the beginning of a sentence.

How to Capitalize the First Letter of Each Word

Some situations require you to capitalize the first letter of each word in a phrase or sentence. Here’s how you can do that with a simple formula:

Difficulty: Beginner

Time Estimate: 5 seconds

  1. Select the cell where you want the result.
  2. Navigate to the Formula bar and enter the formula =PROPER(A1), where A1 is the cell with text.

How to Capitalize the First Letter of Each Word

  1. Press the Enter key on your keyboard.

How to Capitalize the First Letter of Each Word in Google Sheets

There you go! With this formula, each word will be capitalized.

How to Capitalize Only the First Letter in a Cell

If you just want to capitalize the first letter in a cell, the following steps will show you how:

Difficulty: Beginner

Time Estimate: 7 seconds

  1. Click on a blank cell.
  2. Go to the Formula bar and enter the formula =REPLACE(A2,1,1,UPPER(LEFT(A2,1))). Here A1 is the cell with text.

How to Capitalize Only the First Letter in a Cell

  1. Hit the Enter key.

How to Capitalize Only the First Letter in a Cell in Google Sheets

Voila! Here is the result!

How to Capitalize Every Word in a Column

If you want to expand the range of your formula to capitalize all the words in an entire column, check out the description below:

Difficulty: Beginner

Time Estimate: 7 seconds

  1. Select a blank cell.
  2. In the Formula bar, enter the formula =ARRAYFORMULA(PROPER(A1:A)) where A1:A is the cell range.

How to Capitalize Every Word in a Column

  1. Press the Enter key on your keyboard.

How to Capitalize Every Word in a Column in Google Sheets

It’s as simple as ABC!

How to Capitalize the First Letter of a Substring

To capitalize the first letter of a string, use the steps illustrated below: 

Difficulty: Beginner

Time Estimate: 7 seconds

  1. Select the blank cell where you need the result.
  2. Navigate to the Formula bar and enter the formula =UPPER(LEFT(A1,1))&RIGHT(A1,LEN(A1)–1). Here A1 contains the text.

How to Capitalize the First Letter of a Substring

  1. Hit the Enter key.
  2. Drag the icon in the lower right corner of the cell downward to copy the formula for the rest of your list if needed.

How to Capitalize the First Letter of a Substring in Google Sheets

That’s all it takes! 

How to Automatically Capitalize First Letters in Google Sheets

If you want to automatically capitalize first letters, use the following solution to do so:

Difficulty: Beginner

Time Estimate: 3 seconds

  1. Choose the cell that already contains the result along with the blank cells below it where you also want to apply the formula.

How to Automatically Capitalize First Letters in Google Sheets

  1. Press the Ctrl + Enter key combination.

Capitalize First Letters in Google Sheets

Just like that, the formula has been copied for the other cells.

As an alternative, you could select the cell containing the result you have and drag it down to copy the formula to the other cells below it.

The PROPER Function

Take a look at the result below!

Capitalize First Letters in Google Sheets

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Daniel Smith
Daniel Smith
Daniel Smith is automation consultant with a passion for technology, data, AI, and machine learning.