How to get the previous business day in Excel
Formula (Excel and Google Sheets)
=WORKDAY(A2,-1,$D$2:$D$3)Count one working day back: =WORKDAY(A2,-1,holidays).
- Result on the example
- one result per row in
B2, filled down toB6 - Works in
- Every current version
- Google Sheets
- Same formula
See it work
The formula is already in B2, filled down to B6. Change any input and the result updates, or edit the formula to experiment.
How it works
WORKDAY with -1 counts one working day backward, skipping weekends and the holidays in D2:D3. For Monday, July 6 it skips the weekend and the July 3 holiday and returns Thursday, July 2.
=WORKDAY(A2,-1,$D$2:$D$3)Result7/2/2026 (46205)
A27/6/2026The value in A2.
-1-1Makes the value negative.
$D$2:$D$32 rows × 1 col: 7/3/2026, 9/7/2026A range: 2 cells in one column.
WORKDAY(A2,-1,$D$2:$D$3)7/2/2026 (46205)WORKDAY: Date a number of workdays away.- start_date
A27/6/2026 - days
-1-1 - holidays
$D$2:$D$32 rows × 1 col: 7/3/2026, 9/7/2026
- start_date
In Google Sheets
The same formula works in Google Sheets: =WORKDAY(A2,-1,$D$2:$D$3). 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 |
|---|---|---|
| =WORKDAY(A2,-1) | 7/3/2026, 7/7/2026, 9/7/2026…Different result | Skips weekends only. July 3 and September 7 count as business days. |
Common mistakes
=A2-1returns a Sunday for a Monday report date.- Holidays must be real dates, and the range should be locked with $ before filling down.
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.
Get the previous business day
B2, return the business day before the report date, skipping weekends and the holidays in D2:D3. Fill down to B6.Questions
How do I get the next business day?
=WORKDAY(A2,1,$D$2:$D$3).
How do I get the business day before today?
=WORKDAY(TODAY(),-1,$D$2:$D$3).
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.