The Number Group is located in the Home Tab on the Excel ribbon. It includes options that allow you to change how numbers are displayed — such as General, Number, Currency, Accounting, Percentage, Fraction, Date, Time, and more.
When you enter data in Excel — like prices, percentages, or dates — they may not always look the way you want.
Sometimes you want to show currency symbols, sometimes decimal places, and sometimes even percentages or fractions.
Number Format Dropdown
This is the main tool in the Number Group.
You’ll find a dropdown list where you can choose different number formats like:
- General
- Number
- Currency
- Accounting
- Short Date / Long Date
- Time
- Percentage
- Fraction
- Scientific
- Text
- More Number Formats
Example:
If you type 25000 and choose Currency, Excel automatically converts it to ₹25,000.00.
Tip: To access all formats, click the small arrow at the bottom-right corner of the Number Group — it opens the Format Cells dialog box.
General Format
This is the default format in Excel.
Numbers appear as you type them — without any commas, symbols, or decimals.
Example:
If you enter 5000, it will show as 5000 (plain number).
Use this when you don’t need any special formatting.
Number Format
Displays numbers with decimal places and commas.
You can control how many decimal places you want to show.
Example:
Typing 1234.567 and setting 2 decimal places → shows as 1,234.57
Shortcut:
Use Increase Decimal or Decrease Decimal buttons in the Number Group to adjust decimal points.
Currency Format (₹)
Adds a currency symbol (like ₹, $, €, etc.) before the number and keeps decimals aligned.
Example:
2500 → ₹2,500.00
Use this format for financial data such as prices, income, or expenses.
Tip:
Currency format keeps the symbol close to the number (₹2,500), while Accounting format aligns symbols in one column.
Accounting Format
Similar to Currency, but aligns currency symbols and decimal points neatly in a column.
It’s perfect for financial statements.
Example:
| Item | Amount |
| Rent | ₹10,000.00 |
| Salary | ₹25,000.00 |
| Total | ₹35,000.00 |
Shortcut:
Click the ₹ symbol in the Number Group to apply Accounting format quickly.
Percentage Format
Converts a decimal number into a percentage instantly.
Example:
0.75 → 75%
Shortcut:
Select cells → click the % icon in the Number Group.
Tip:
You can increase or decrease decimal places to show percentages more precisely (e.g., 75.50%).
Comma Style
Adds thousands separators (commas) to large numbers — making them easy to read.
Example:
2500000 → 2,500,000
Shortcut:
Select cells → click the Comma Style (,) icon in the Number Group.
Increase / Decrease Decimal
These two small buttons let you adjust the number of digits after the decimal point.
Example:
123.4567
- Increase Decimal → 123.4567
- Decrease Decimal → 123.46
Date and Time Formats
You can format numbers to display dates and times automatically.
Example:
Typing 14-10-2025 → Excel displays 14-Oct-2025
Typing 12:30 → Excel shows 12:30 PM
Tip:
Use Short Date for compact format and Long Date for full form (e.g., “Tuesday, October 14, 2025”).
Fraction and Scientific Formats
- Fraction: Displays numbers as fractions (e.g., 0.5 → 1/2).
- Scientific: Shows numbers in exponential form (e.g., 123000 → 1.23E+05).
These are used in scientific, mathematical, or engineering data.
Example: Financial Data Formatting
| Description | Value (General) | Value (Formatted) |
| Sales | 250000 | ₹2,50,000.00 |
| Tax Rate | 0.18 | 18% |
| Date | 14-10-2025 | 14-Oct-2025 |
| Net Profit | 1234.567 | ₹1,234.57 |
This example shows how the Number Group helps make your data more meaningful and visually appealing.