I CAN'T USE THE =IMAGE FUNCTION, I GET THE ERROR ¿#NOMBRE?

Question

I CANNOT USE THE IMAGE FUNCTION, I ALSO TRIED TO SEARCH FOR IT IN SPANISH BUT IT DOES NOT APPEAR, I HAVE ALREADY UPDATED OFFICE BUT IT STILL DOES NOT ALLOW ME TO USE THE FUNCTION, IT DOES NOT EVEN APPEAR IN THE LIST OF AVAILABLE FUNCTIONS

Answer 1

Hi, Sheyla Piedad Pacheco Carvajal

The error normally means Excel is not recognizing the function name, but in Spanish Excel there can also be a language/formula separator issue, or the desktop app may be on a channel/account where the function has not been enabled yet.

Besides the solutions provided by the Q&A Assist, here are some suggestions you can try:

First, test it in Excel for the web using the same Microsoft account. Open the file at OneDrive/Excel online and try a very simple formula like:

=IMAGE("https://support.content.office.net/en-us/media/2d9e717a-0077-438f-8e5e-f85a1305d4ad.jpg")

If your Excel is in Spanish, also try:

=IMAGEN("https://support.content.office.net/en-us/media/2d9e717a-0077-438f-8e5e-f85a1305d4ad.jpg")

If it works online but not in the desktop app, the issue is likely with the installed Excel build, update channel, or license activation, not your formula.

Also check File > Account in Excel and make sure it says the product is activated with the same Microsoft 365 account you expect. If this is a work/school installation, it is recommended that the IT admin check the Office update channel, because some enterprise channels receive Excel features later than the regular Current Channel.

Finally, make sure the image link is a direct public https image link, not a webpage link, OneDrive sharing link, or a link that requires sign-in.

Thank you for your patience in reading, I hope this information has been helpful to you. 

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Answer 2

The #NAME? (¿#NOMBRE?) error with =IMAGE indicates that the IMAGE function is not available in the current Excel version. When a workbook contains a function that the installed Excel version does not support, Excel shows the function name with an _xlfn. prefix internally and returns #NAME? when calculating.

IMAGE is a new function (listed as available starting with Excel 2024 and Microsoft 365). If Excel does not yet include this function, it will not appear in the function list and any formula using it will return #NAME?. Updating Office does not help if the installed product or channel does not yet provide this function.

To resolve this, the only supported options are:

1. Use a version of Excel that supports IMAGE (for example, Excel for Microsoft 365 or Excel 2024 where the function is available).
2. Remove or replace IMAGE with other supported methods (such as inserting pictures manually instead of using a formula) in the current Excel version.

There is no way to enable IMAGE in a version of Excel that does not support it; unsupported functions must be removed or replaced.

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References:

• Issue: An _xlfn. prefix is displayed in front of a formula
• Excel functions (alphabetical)
• IMAGE function