What Is Superscript In Google Sheets?
The Superscript in Google Sheets is a value that can be a text, character or number typed above the existing cell value, that looks like it is raised to the power. Therefore, the superscript is attached to the head of the cell value, with a small font, in comparison to the cell value’s font.
The Google Sheets Superscript feature is not available in Google Sheets. However, we have alternate options such as copy-paste Unicode Characters, CHAR function, etc. to convert the characters to its superscript form.
For example, we will write the following formula in a right manner using the Google Sheets Superscript.
Select cell B2, enter the formula =“E=mc”&Char(178) and press “Enter”.
The output is shown above. The value 2 is raised to the power or to the superscript position.
Key Takeaways
- The Superscript and Subscript in Google Sheets is used to place the required values to the power or the base of the existing values, respectively.
- The Superscript feature is used to insert values in mathematical formulas and scientific data.
- We can insert Superscript in Google Sheets in multiple ways, namely,
- Unicode method – directly finding the already existing values and copy-pasting the results.
- CHAR function – We can use the ampersand “&” symbol to concatenate the values and the ASCII code derived from this function to add the superscript.
- If we use the already existing ASCII code, in a dataset, as a cell reference, then, we will be able to drag the formula because of the ASCII codes as the cell reference. In scenarios without the ASCII code, we must manually add the code for each formula and execute it individually.
How To Add Superscript In Google Sheets?
We can add Superscript In Google Sheets using few methods, namely,
- Copy Paste Unicode Characters.
- Char Function Method.
Method #1 – Copy Paste Unicode Characters –
The steps to add Superscript In Google Sheets using the Copy Paste Unicode Characters are,
Step 1: Open the website https://graphemica.com/
Step 2: Type the characters or numbers that must be converted to superscript as words and not just as values, here “superscript two” in the search bar and press “Enter”. We will get the output, as shown below.
Step 3: Copy the result, as shown below.
Step 4: Paste it in the Google Sheets formula bar. It is as shown below.
Step 5: Once copied we can paste it multiple times as required, as shown in cell B6. Its just like copy-paste of any other cell value.
Method #2 – CHAR Function Method –
The steps to add Google Sheets Superscript using the Char Function Method are,
Step 1: Enter the value we want to convert to its superscript form.
Step 2: Find the ASCII code using the Code list. It is for the corresponding superscript.
Step 3: Enter the formula =CHAR(). Add the code in the as the table_number argument.
Step 4: Then, the formula will actually look like, “=char(code)” . Press “Enter”.
ASCII Codes For Superscript
The ASCII Codes for Superscript is given in the image below.
Examples
We will consider specific examples to convert the values to subscript and superscript.
Example #1 – Use Subscript for Chemical Formulas
We have the data table with some chemical formulas. Let us convert the required characters to Subscript in Google Sheets.
The steps to convert the chemical formulas to its right format using the Subscript in Google Sheets are,
Step 1: Copy the values from cells A2 to A4 and paste it in cells B2 to B4, as shown below.
Step 2: We will use the Unicode method for this example. Open the website https://graphemica.com/ and type “subscript two” in the search bar and press “Enter”.
Step 3: We got two options. Copy the first one as it is the right format, as shown below.
Step 4: Since we must paste it for multiple cells, paste the value in a new cell, here cell D1, in the Google Sheets formula bar, as shown below.
Step 5: Now got to each cell from B2 to B4, remove the exiting value 2 and replace it with the new copied value.
The output is shown above and the chemical formulas are in the right format. Now, it can be used for scientific calculations.
Example #2 – Use Superscript For Footnotes
The data given below consists of the 5 footnotes available in the Google sheets and the ASCII codes of the corresponding footnote numbers. We will use the CHAR function method to Use Superscript for Footnotes.
The steps to add Superscript In Google Sheets using the Char Function Method are,
Step 1: Select cell C2 and enter the formula =“footnote”&char(B2), as shown below.
Step 2: Press “Enter”. We get the output shown below, along with the google sheets “Suggested autofill” option.
- We can either check/tick the autofill option or use the fill handle method.
- Here, let us use the drag method. Therefore, we can choose the “X” mark, and the option vanishes leaving behind the C2 cellsresult.
Step 3: Drag the formula from cell C2 to C5 using the fill handle to get the following output.
[Note: We were able to drag the formula because we gave the ASCII codes as cell reference. In scenarios without the ASCII code, we must manually add the code for each formula and execute it individually.]
Example #3 – Use Superscript for Trademark
The given table consists of a couple of trademarks or Logo. We will Use Superscript for Trademark using the simple Copy Paste Unicode Characters method.
The steps to add Superscript In Google Sheets using the Copy Paste Unicode Characters are,
Step 1: Open the website https://graphemica.com/ and scroll down to find the “®” value, as shown below.
Step 2: Click it. Copy the result, as shown below.
Step 3: Remove the existing letter R from cells B2 and B3. Paste the copied trademark Unicode to get the following output.
Important Things To Note
- The Superscript is a text formatting function which is not available in Google Sheets.
- We cannot copy an image of converted superscript and paste it in an existing cell value’s cell.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
A few reasons the Superscript in Google Sheets may not work are,
• The Superscript puts the number or text in small fonts above the baseline of numbers, words, or characters. In such scenarios, if the font of the cell value is less, then the superscript will be so tiny or invisible. Instead of assuming that the conversion to superscript is a failure, we must first increase the font of the result cells to actually see if the superscript is available or not.
• Some times in the process of conversion we would not have copied the Unicode at all. So, ensure we have copied and then paste it accordingly.
• When using the CHAR function we might have copy-pasted the formula. Pleas ensure to type the formula starting with equal sign, and when the CHAR formula entry comes then the formula syntax must pop-up. Or else, we will not get the precise result.
• Generally, the Superscript feature in Google Sheets is used in mathematical and scientific equations. So, if the superscript added is wrong, then obviously the calculated results will be incorrect as well.
• The Superscript in Google Sheets is a text or number inserted above the baseline of any number, word, or character. It is presented in a smaller font than the actual number or character.
Some examples for superscript are a2, b2,1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc.
• The Subscript in Google Sheets is a text or number typed below the baseline of any number, word, or character. It is presented in a smaller font than the actual number or character.
Some examples for superscript are H2O, CO2, H2SO4, O2, etc.
• Both of these features are mainly used in mathematical and scientific equations or to represent ordinal numbers.
No, they are not available or inbuilt in Google Sheets. However, we can use some methods to add Subscript and Superscript in Google Sheets as learnt in the article.
Download Template
This article must help understand Superscript in Google Sheets with its formula and examples. You can download the template here to use it instantly.
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