Return the Weekday as Weekday Name

Remember, the WEEKDAY formula shown in the previous section only returns the weekday as a number. There are at least two ways we can use formulas to force Excel to show the actual name of the weekday.

The first method is perhaps the simplest, and all you need to do is apply a custom number format of DDD or DDDD. Again using 31-Jul-2007 as an example, select the date cell, right-click, go to Format Cells, and then choose Number tab → Custom. Enter the custom format DDD under Type and click OK. You will get Tue in your cell.

Another, probably safer way is to reference the date cell (e.g., =A1) and format this cell with a custom number format of DDD or DDDD. The big advantage to this method is that it leaves our true underlying date as a valid Excel date.