01/03/2020 How to convert coordinates latitude and longitude with Excel

Convert Coordinates Latitude and Longitude

Advanced (https://www.excel-exercise.com/advanced/) 5 December 2019 18:37 (5 December 2019)
by Frédéric LE GUEN (https://www.excel-exercise.com/author/konga/)

Nowadays, GPS localization is common. Some apps use decimal format (48.85833) while
others return the coordinates in degrees, minutes and seconds (48°51'29.99'').

In this article I will show you how to convert from one format to the other and vice-versa.

Add GPS coordinates to address

If you are looking to add GPS coordinates to your address, please go to this page
(https://www.excel-exercise.com/convert-address-to-gps-coordinates/).

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01/03/2020 How to convert coordinates latitude and longitude with Excel

How to write a GPS coordinates in Excel

GPS coordinates are generally written using the symbols ° (degrees), ' (minutes), and ''
(seconds).

(https://www.excel-exercise.com/wp-

content/uploads/2012/04/Latitude_Longitude_1.png)

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01/03/2020 How to convert coordinates latitude and longitude with Excel

But if you keep your coordinate as a string, no calculation is

possible. So it will be impossible to convert the GPS
coordinates ⛔⛔⛔

What is the best way to write a GPS coordinate?

Use the following format for your GPS coordinates - hours:minutes:seconds. Each part of
the coordinate should be delimited with a colon ":"

48:51:29.99

The default cell display could be different depending on the version of Excel that you are
using. It can display the GPS coordinates as either a date or a time.

(https://www.excel-

exercise.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Latitude_Longitude_2a.png)

Don't worry, we will correct this formatting soon 😉😎😃

Insert a negative time


The standard GPS coordinate is:
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01/03/2020 How to convert coordinates latitude and longitude with Excel

positive for East and North

negative for West and South

Unfortunately, Excel doesn't accept a negative time, so you need to wrap it in double quotes
as though it were text. Then put a minus sign before the opening quote.

=-"74:02:40.29"

But the cell content is displayed as a string of #

(https://www.excel-exercise.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Latitude_Longitude_2b.png)

Excel doesn't like negative time. But you can correct this by checking one option in Excel.

(https://www.excel-exercise.com/wp-
content/uploads/2012/04/Latitude_Longitude_GPS_Coordinate_3.png)Go to the menu
File>Options
Select Advanced 
At the bottom of the list of options, check the option "Use 1904 date system"
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01/03/2020 How to convert coordinates latitude and longitude with Excel

(https://www.excel-

exercise.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Latitude_Longitude_GPS_Coordinate_2b.png)

Customize the time format

Now, let's customize the format (https://www.excel-exercise.com/date-format-in-excel/) of our
cell:

Open the Format cell dialog box (Ctrl + 1)

Select the option Custom
In the Type box, enter this format code exactly as it is displayed below

[hh]°mm'ss.00\''

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01/03/2020 How to convert coordinates latitude and longitude with Excel

(https://www.excel-

exercise.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Latitude_Longitude_GPS_Coordinate_4.png)

The hour between square brackets is compulsory to display a value over 23 hours.

Convert coordinates from Degree, Minute, Second

(DMS) to decimal
Because we have written the coordinate as a number, we just have to multiply the cell by
24 (24 hours in a day). The number format is General.

(https://www.excel-


exercise.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Latitude_Longitude_GPS_Coordinate_5.png)

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01/03/2020 How to convert coordinates latitude and longitude with Excel

And the the conversion is finished 😍😍😍

=B3*24

Then just change the format of the cell range D3:E7 to General.

Convert coordinates from decimal to Degree,

Minute, Second
And the other way round, to convert a decimal value to degrees, minutes and seconds,
simply divide the value by 24.

= B3/24

(https://www.excel-

exercise.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Latitude_Longitude_GPS_Coordinate_6.png)

Tags: Date format (https://www.excel-exercise.com/tag/date-format/), Time calculation

(https://www.excel-exercise.com/tag/time-calculation/), Time format (https://www.excel- 
exercise.com/tag/time-format/)
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01/03/2020 How to convert coordinates latitude and longitude with Excel

 7 comments Skip to comment form 

Jimmy Loki on 26/11/2019 at 17:43

# (https://www.excel-exercise.com/convert-latitude-longitude/#comment-90768)

Thank you, I tried many tutorials using VBA but failed... you are such a Genius

Laura on 14/11/2019 at 19:24

# (https://www.excel-exercise.com/convert-latitude-longitude/#comment-90563)

I can not make Excel recognize the custom format ..[hh]°mm'ss.00\ it only lets me pick from a select list of
formats, none of which is right. Is it my version of Excel?

Frédéric LE GUEN () on 26/11/2019 at 15:05

Author

# (https://www.excel-exercise.com/convert-latitude-longitude/#comment-90761)

Hi, that's strange. Do you select custom in the list of format ?



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floyd on 09/07/2019 at 08:37

# (https://www.excel-exercise.com/convert-latitude-longitude/#comment-87689)

Been reading so many VBA scripts on how to do this DMS to DD conversion within excel
And even Microsoft's publication of their own VBA script on how to do this
https://support.microsoft.com/en-ca/help/213449/how-to-convert-degrees-minutes-seconds-angles-to-or-
from-decimal-angle (https://support.microsoft.com/en-ca/help/213449/how-to-convert-degrees-minutes-
seconds-angles-to-or-from-decimal-angle)
Even does the calculation part wrong

Wasted so much time trying to remedy their script, and read other scripts on the internet.
Your solution was implemented in 1 minute, so so simple, and brilliant.
Thank you again so much for posting this.

Frédéric LE GUEN () on 23/07/2019 at 07:19

Author

# (https://www.excel-exercise.com/convert-latitude-longitude/#comment-88038)

Thanks 🙂

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01/03/2020 How to convert coordinates latitude and longitude with Excel

Sandro (http://www.rizzetto.com) on 13/05/2019 at 10:14

# (https://www.excel-exercise.com/convert-latitude-longitude/#comment-86400)

GENIUS!! Thanks for sharing

Btw: it misses a double quote at the end of the formula written in black background ([hh]°mm'ss.00\" )

rajeshwar pilli on 02/06/2018 at 11:07

# (https://www.excel-exercise.com/convert-latitude-longitude/#comment-70130)

kindly provide me any kind of excel format or program for convert arbitrary coordinates to GPS coordinates.

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