Last updated: December 28, 2016 A text box in Microsoft Excel provides an option for displaying text which can be moved to nearly any location on your spreadsheet. You may have tried to enter a formula into a text box, only to find that the results of the formula will not calculate. Unfortunately an Excel text box does not work the same way as a cell, so a formula that is entered directly into a text box will not function the way that you might be expecting. But a text box in Microsoft Excel 2010 can be linked to display the value of a cell in the spreadsheet, including the value that is the result of an executed formula.

Our guide below will show you how you can link a text box to a spreadsheet cell so that you can display your formula result in the text box. Using a Formula in a Text Box in Excel 2010 The steps in this article will show you how to link a text box to a cell in Microsoft Excel 2010. You cannot directly enter a formula into a text box, but you can link a cell with a formula to a text box, so that the result of the formula displays inside the text box. This means that you will need to enter a formula into a cell in your spreadsheet, then link that cell to your text box. Step 1: Open your spreadsheet in Microsoft Excel 2010.

Step 2: Click inside a cell where you can enter the formula whose result you want to display in the text box. In many cases, then best option for this is to place the formula in a cell that is away from the regular data in your spreadsheet. Step 3: Enter the formula whose result you want to display in the text box. Step 4: Click the Insert tab at the top of the window. Step 5: Click the Text Box button in the Text section of the navigational ribbon. Step 6: Draw your text box where you want it to display in the worksheet. Step 7: Click inside the text box once to select it, then click inside the Formula Bar above the spreadsheet.

Step 8: Type an = sign into the Formula Bar, then click the cell containing the formula that you entered in Step 3. Press the Enter key on your keyboard after the cell is selected. The text box should now be displaying the result of your formula.

Summary – how to use an Excel text box formula • Click inside a cell in the spreadsheet, then enter your formula. • Click the Insert tab at the top of the window. • Click the Text Box button. • Draw your text box. • Click inside the text box, then click inside the formula bar.

• Type =XX, but replace the XX with the cell location where you entered the formula in step 1. How to Insert a Text Box in Excel 2010 The steps below focus on one specific aspect of the steps above – inserting a text box in Excel 2010. Step 1: Click the Insert tab at the top of the window. Step 2: Click the Text Box button in the Text section of the ribbon.