How to Skip Fridays or Weekends in an Excel Date Sequence
Question details
The user needs to create a date progression for a school schedule that intentionally skips specific weekdays, such as Fridays or the entire weekend.
- Product
- Excel
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Generating a custom school or work schedule where dates automatically increment but bypass specific days of the week based on dynamic cell variables.
- Observed behavior
- A standard date drag-down increments daily, but the user requires a sequence that omits Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays based on start dates and increment values located in designated cells.
Ensure your starting date cell is formatted as a Date, and note the specific cell references containing your start date (e.g., F1) and your increment value (e.g., B2).
Use WORKDAY.INTL to Define Custom Non-Working Days
The WORKDAY.INTL function is the most reliable method to exclude specific days, such as Fridays and weekends, from your date sequence by using custom weekend parameters.
The WORKDAY.INTL function allows you to specify exactly which days of the week should be considered non-working days. You can use a 7-character string of 1s and 0s, where 1 represents a skipped day and 0 represents a working day, starting from Monday.
Click on the cell where you want the next date in the sequence to appear.
To skip Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, enter the formula =WORKDAY.INTL(F1, B2, "0000111"). In this formula, F1 is your start date, B2 is the number of days to add, and "0000111" represents the custom weekend.
If you only want to skip Fridays, use the formula =WORKDAY.INTL(F1, B2, 16). The number 16 is Excel's pre-defined weekend parameter specifically for Fridays.
Press Enter. Right-click the result cell, select 'Format Cells', choose 'Date' from the Number tab, and click OK.
Use the Standard WORKDAY Function for Standard Weekends
If your schedule only requires skipping standard weekends (Saturday and Sunday) and includes Fridays, the simpler WORKDAY function works perfectly.
Effortlessly Manage Custom Schedules in WPS Spreadsheet
WPS Spreadsheet fully supports advanced date and time functions like WORKDAY.INTL, allowing you to easily generate complex schedules that skip specific days without missing a beat.
- 1. Open your document: Launch WPS Spreadsheet and open the workbook containing your school or work schedule.
- 2. Enter the formula: Type =WORKDAY.INTL(Start_Date, Days_to_Add, "0000111") into the target cell to skip Friday through Sunday.
- 3. Fill the series: Press Enter, click on the result cell, and drag the small square at the bottom-right corner to fill your date sequence.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I skip holidays along with custom weekends in my sequence?
Yes, the WORKDAY.INTL function accepts a fourth optional argument for holidays. You can reference a range of cells containing holiday dates, like =WORKDAY.INTL(F1, B2, "0000111", H1:H10), and those specified dates will also be skipped in your sequence.
Why is my WORKDAY.INTL formula returning a 5-digit number instead of a date?
Spreadsheet applications store dates as sequential serial numbers for calculation purposes. If you see a 5-digit number like 44500, simply change the cell format to 'Date' via the Home tab or by right-clicking and selecting 'Format Cells'.
How do I skip only Tuesdays and Thursdays using this formula?
You can use the custom 7-character string method in the WORKDAY.INTL function. Since the string always starts on Monday, Tuesday is the 2nd character and Thursday is the 4th. The formula would be =WORKDAY.INTL(F1, 1, "0101000").
