The Decimal Symbol: A Guide to Commas, Dots, and Arabic Formats

You can change the decimal symbol system-wide in Windows or apply a custom rule exclusively within Microsoft Excel. Changing it via Windows updates all applications, while changing it in Excel prevents altering your global settings. How to Change the Decimal Symbol in Windows

Modifying this setting at the operating system level updates the defaults for Excel, Word, and all other installed software. Press Windows Key + R to open the Run dialog box.

Type control and press Enter to open the classic Control Panel. Click on Clock and Region, then select Region.

At the bottom of the Formats tab, click the Additional settings… button. In the Numbers tab, look for the Decimal symbol field.

Delete the existing symbol and type your preferred character (e.g., switch a period . to a comma ,).

(Optional) Update the Digit grouping symbol (thousands separator) to match your region’s style. Click Apply, then click OK to save the changes. How to Change the Decimal Symbol Exclusively in Excel

If you do not want to change your global Windows configurations, you can override the system settings inside Excel’s advanced options menu. Change the character used to separate thousands or decimals