How to convert seconds to minutes and seconds (mm:ss) in Excel
Formula (Excel and Google Sheets)
=B2/86400Divide by 86,400 and format as mm:ss: =B2/86400 shows 95 seconds as 01:35.
- Result on the example
- one result per row in
C2, filled down toC6 - Works in
- Every current version
- Google Sheets
- Same formula
See it work
The formula is already in C2, filled down to C6. Change any input and the result updates, or edit the formula to experiment.
How it works
Dividing seconds by 86,400 turns them into a fraction of a day, and the mm:ss number format shows that as minutes and seconds: 312 seconds is 05:12.
=B2/86400Result0.001099537037
B295The value in B2.
B2/864000.001099537037The / operator divides.
In Google Sheets
The same formula works in Google Sheets: =B2/86400. We ran it in Google Sheets mode on the same data and it returns the same results.
Other ways to do it
Each one was run on the same example sheet.
| Formula | Result | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| =TEXT(B2/86400,"mm:ss") | 01:35, 05:12, 00:47…Different result | Text, for labels. Text. |
| =INT(B2/60)&":"&TEXT(MOD(B2,60),"00") | 1:35, 5:12, 0:47…Different result | Text that keeps counting past 60 minutes, like 75:30. Text without a leading zero. |
Common mistakes
- mm:ss wraps at 60 minutes: 3,725 seconds shows as 02:05. Use the custom format [m]:ss, or h:mm:ss, for longer durations.
- In a number format, mm right before :ss means minutes; on its own, mm means the month.
Try it yourself
Same data, empty answer cell. Your formula is graded instantly, then re-checked on changed data, so a typed-in number won't pass.
Convert seconds to minutes and seconds (mm:ss)
C2, convert the length in seconds to a time that displays as minutes and seconds, and fill down to C6.Questions
How do I convert mm:ss back to seconds?
=C2*86400.
How do I show hours too?
Use the format h:mm:ss.
Checked by running on 2026-10-30: every formula and result on this page was calculated by the Spreadsheet Practice formula engine, in both Excel and Google Sheets modes.