Rational
Find column number for a reference.
Description
The Excel COLUMN function returns the column number of a first reference cell. For example, =COLUMN(E10:F10) returns 5 (5th column same as the sequence of E in alphabets).
Syntax
=COLUMN([reference])
Parameters
reference [optional] – Reference cell to find the column number.
Return Value
An integer representing the column number of references.
Key Notes
- The COLUMN function accepts empty, single cell or a range of cells as an argument.
- Reference return the column number of the first cell in a range of cells. Moreover, it does not accept multiple areas.
- If the reference argument is blank or empty, then the function returns the column number of that formula cell.
Keep Reading Similar Functions:

COLUMNS
The COLUMNS function returns a count of all columns of a cell range or array formula, =COLUMNS(E10:F100) returns 2 (two columns E & F).

ROW
The ROW function returns the row number of a reference cell. For example, =ROW(E9:E10) returns 9 (9th from top to bottom, only the first cell).

AREAS
The AREAS function returns a number of areas or region. I.e., =AREAS((B2:C4,D8:F9)) returns 2 (number of areas), include extra sets of parentheses.

ADDRESS
The ADDRESS function returns cell address from given row and column numbers of a worksheet. For example, if you pass ADDRESS(5,6) the function returns $F$5.

ROWS
The ROWS function returns the number of rows of a cell range or array formula, =ROWS(E10:F100) returns 91 (91 rows in the cell range i.e. 10 to 100).