Define Date and Numeric Formats for Mail Merge Fields

Format Merge Fields Using Mail Merge Switches

To format a merge field:

1. In the template document, while the merge field is selected, do the following to display the field code:
   • Press Shift + F9 on Windows.
   • Press Fn + Shift + F9 on Mac.
2. Remove "\*MERGEFORMAT" from the field code.
3. Enter the switch in the field code. For example:
   1. Original field code: {MERGEFIELD myObject.myField  \*MERGEFORMAT} 
   2. Updated field code: {MERGEFIELD myObject.myField \# ###,###,###,#00.0}
4. Update the field:
   • Press F9 on Windows.
   • Press Fn + F9 on Mac.

To format a numeric merge field, use the \# switches. For example, to display a currency field as "$125.23", the merge field should be defined as {MERGEFIELD myObject.myField \# $#,##0.00}.

To format a date merge field, use the \@ switches. For example, to display a date field as "03/30/2010", the merge field should be defined as { MERGEFIELD myObject.myField \@ MM/dd/yyyy}. 

Date and Numeric Format Examples

The following table includes formatting examples for the date and number types mail merge fields.

Field Format	Merge Field Syntax
To use standard date formatting: 10/26/2012	{MERGEFIELD Invoice.InvoiceDate}
To use simple date formatting: 20121026	{MERGEFIELD Invoice.InvoiceDate \@ yyyyMMdd}
To use text date formatting: OCT 2012	{MERGEFIELD Invoice.InvoiceDate \@ MMM yyyy}
To use standard percentage formatting: 0.08	{MERGEFIELD TaxItem.TaxRate}
To use percentage symbol formatting: 8%	{MERGEFIELD TaxItem.TaxRate \# ##%}
To specify a label for a quantity: 3.0000kg	{MERGEFIELD Usage.Quantity \# #,##kg0.0000}
To specify a symbol for a currency: €12,13.8	{MERGEFIELD Invoice.Total \# €#,# 0.0}