This is an example of how to change a character variable, AGE, to numeric.
This program reliably changes character variables to numeric variables. The INPUT function takes two arguments: the name of a character variable and a SAS informat or user-defined informat for reading the data.
newage = input(age,3.0);
drop age;
rename newage=age;
Below are a few examples of conversions using INPUT function (character variable “oldvar” to numeric variable “newvar“):
oldvar | input function | newvar |
---|---|---|
32000 | newvar=input(oldvar, 5.); | 32000 |
32000 | newvar=input(oldvar, 5.2); | 320.00 |
32,000 | newvar=input(oldvar,comma6.); | 32000 |
NOTE: If a character variable only includes numbers, it can be automatically converted to a numeric variable by using it in a numeric context. For example:
newvar = oldvar + 0 ;
newvar = oldvar*1 ;