How to Change Case in Excel
Fix inconsistent capitalization — UPPERCASE, lowercase, Title Case, or Sentence case — across a whole column.
Last updated: August 2026
| Before | UPPER | lower | Proper | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| john SMITH | → | JOHN SMITH | john smith | John Smith |
| acme corp | → | ACME CORP | acme corp | Acme Corp |
Method 1 — UPPER, LOWER, PROPER functions
- In a helper column:
=UPPER(A2)for CAPITALS,=LOWER(A2)for lowercase, or=PROPER(A2)for Title Case. - Copy the formula down the column.
- Copy → Paste Special → Values over the original, then delete the helper column.
There's no built-in Sentence case function, and PROPER isn't name-aware — it writes O'brien and Mcdonald, and capitalizes small words like "of" and "the".
Method 2 — Flash Fill
Type the cased version of the first cell, then press Ctrl + E. Quick, but it can mis-guess and there's no preview of what changed.
The 1-click way — Tellsheet's Change Case
Select the cells, click Change Case, and choose UPPER, lower, Title, or Sentence. Tellsheet rewrites them in place — no helper column, no paste-back — with a preview and full revert. Change Case is one of Tellsheet's free tools.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a Proper Case function in Excel?
Yes — =PROPER(A2) title-cases each word. It isn't name-aware (writes O'brien, Mcdonald) and can't do Sentence case. Tellsheet's Change Case offers Title and Sentence in place.
How do I change case without a helper column?
Formulas always need one. Tellsheet's Change Case rewrites the selected cells in place with a preview, so there's nothing to copy back.
How do I capitalize just the first letter of a sentence?
There's no single built-in function. Tellsheet's Change Case has a Sentence option that capitalizes the first letter of each sentence and lowercases the rest.
Related Excel guides
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