Changing attribute table field from string to numeric in order to join excel sheet

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01-12-2017 08:20 AM
PayvandRzad
New Contributor

Hi,

I am trying to attach an excel sheet to one of my shapefiles but I am unable to because the fields in the attribute table of my shapefile are string instead of numeric. I followed the instructions on this how to page (How To: Convert a string field to a number field) by creating a new double field but I still was unable to properly join my excel sheet. I also tried changing the fields by opening the .dbf file of the shapefile in SPSS but when I saved the changes, they would disappear in when I opened the attribute table in GIS. Would someone be able to guide me in the right direction? I am using ArcMap 10.3.1

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DanPatterson_Retired
MVP Emeritus

you might have a better chance if you produced a string field in excel, then use that in the join to the string field in the feature class.  This is to try and mitigate numeric precision or floating point representation interfering with the join.

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