How to get the start of the week for a date in Excel and Google Sheets

Excel & Google Sheets

=A2-WEEKDAY(A2,2)+1

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Sample data — click any cell to edit

Cell row 1 column 1	Cell row 1 column 2
Cell row 2 column 1	Cell row 2 column 2
Cell row 3 column 1	Cell row 3 column 2
Cell row 4 column 1	Cell row 4 column 2

Formula

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Step by step

1Put your dates in column A (e.g., A2:A6).
2In B2 enter =A2-WEEKDAY(A2,2)+1 — WEEKDAY with mode 2 returns 1 for Monday through 7 for Sunday, so subtracting it and adding 1 snaps back to Monday.
3Format column B as a Date to display the result correctly.
4Copy B2 down for all rows.

Tips

To get Sunday as the week start, use =A2-WEEKDAY(A2,1)+1 (mode 1 counts Sunday as day 1).

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Frequently asked

Why does the result show a number instead of a date?

The formula returns a date serial number. Select the cell and format it as Date (Ctrl+1 in Excel or Format > Number > Date in Sheets).

Can I get the ISO week start (always Monday)?

Yes — =A2-WEEKDAY(A2,2)+1 uses mode 2 which treats Monday as day 1, making it the ISO week start.

Formulas used

WEEKDAY DATE TODAY ISOWEEKNUM WEEKNUM WORKDAY INDEX EDATE

Related tasks

Written and reviewed by FormulaCraft Team. Each formula on this page is run through our verification engine before publishing.

Last reviewed: May 28, 2026