Excel

Range
Cell, Row, Column | Range Examples | Fill a Range | Move a Range | Copy/Paste a Range | Insert Row, Column A range in Excel is a collection of two or more cells. This chapter gives an overview of some very important range operations.

Cell, Row, Column
Let's start by selecting a cell, row and column. 1. To select cell C3, click on the box at the intersection of column C and row 3.

2. To select column C, click on the column C header.

3. To select row 3, click on the row 3 header.

Range Examples
A range is a collection of two or more cells. 1. To select the range B2:C4, click on cell B2 and drag it to cell C4.

2. To select a range of individual cells, hold down CTRL and click on each cell that you want to include in the range.

Fill a Range
To fill a range, execute the following steps. 1a. Enter the value 2 into cell B2.

1b. Select cell B2, click on the lower right corner of cell B2 and drag it down to cell B8.

Result:

This dragging technique is very important and you will use it very often in Excel. Here's another example. 2a. Enter the value 2 into cell B2 and the value 4 into cell B3.

2b. Select cell B2 and cell B3, click on the lower right corner of this range and drag it down.

Excel automatically fills the range based on the pattern of the first two values. That's pretty cool huh!? Here's another example. 3a. Enter the date 6/13/2013 into cell B2 and the date 6/16/2013 into cell B3.

3b. Select cell B2 and cell B3, click on the lower right corner of this range and drag it down.

The sky is the limit! You might also find our Custom Lists and Fibonacci Sequence examples useful.

Move a Range
To move a range, execute the following steps. 1. Select a range and click on the border of the range.

2. Drag the range to its new location.

Copy/Paste a Range
To copy and paste a range, execute the following steps. 1. Select the range, right click, and then click Copy (or press CTRL + c).

2. Select the cell where you want the first cell of the range to appear, right click, and then click Paste under 'Paste Options:' (or press CTRL + v).

Insert Row, Column
To insert a row between the values 20 and 40 below, execute the following steps. 1. Select row 3.

2. Right click, and then click Insert.

Result:

The rows below the new row are shifted down. In a similar way, you can insert a column.

Fibonacci Sequence
It's easy to create all sorts of sequences in Excel. For example, the Fibonacci sequence.

1. The first two numbers in the Fibonacci sequence are 0 and 1.

2. Each subsequent number can be found by adding up the two previous numbers.

3. Click on the lower right corner of cell A3 and drag it down. Result. The Fibonacci Sequence in Excel.

Custom Lists
If you create a custom list in Excel, you can easily fill a range with your own list of departments, clients, cities, credit card numbers, etc. This can save time and reduce errors. First, we will look at an example of a built-in list. 1. Type Sun into cell B2.

2. Select cell B2, click on the lower right corner of cell B2 and drag it across to cell H2.

How does Excel know this? 3. On the green File tab, click Options. 4. Under Advanced, go to General and click Edit Custom Lists.

Here you can find the built-in 'days of the week' lists. Also notice the 'months of the year' lists. 5. To create your own custom list, type some list entries, and click Add.

Note: you can also import a list from a worksheet. 6. Click OK. 7. Type London into cell C2.

8. Select cell C2, click on the lower right corner of cell C2 and drag it down to cell C5.

Comments

Insert Comment

| Edit Comment

| Show/Hide Comment

You can insert a comment to give feedback about the content of a cell.

Insert Comment
To insert a comment, execute the following steps. 1. Select a cell. 2. Right click, and then click Insert Comment.

3. Type your comment.

Excel displays a red triangle in the upper-right corner of the cell. 4. Click outside the comment box. 5. Hover over the cell to view the comment.

Excel automatically adds your user name. To change this name, execute the following steps. 6. On the File tab, click Excel Options and choose the General category. 7. Change the User name.

Edit Comment
To edit a comment, execute the following steps. 1. Select the cell with the comment you want to edit. 2. Right click, and then click Edit Comment.

3. Edit the comment. Note: To delete a comment, click Delete Comment.

Show/Hide Comment
By default, a comment is only visible when you hover over the cell that contains the comment. To keep a comment visible all the time, execute the following steps. 1. For example, select cell B4. 2. On the Review tab, in the Comments group, click Show/Hide Comment. 3. Select another cell.

Note: to hide the comment, select cell B4 and click Show/Hide Comment again. To keep all comments visible all the time, click Show All Comments.

Hide Columns or Rows
Hide | Unhide Sometimes it can be useful to hide columns or rows in Excel.

Hide
To hide a column, execute the following steps. 1. Select a column.

2. Right click, and then click Hide.

Result:

Note: to hide a row, select a row, right click, and then click Hide.

Unhide
To unhide a column, execute the following steps. 1. Select the columns on either side of the hidden column.

2. Right click, and then click Unhide.

Result:

Note: to unhide a row, select the rows on either side of the hidden row, right click, and then click Unhide.

Skip Blanks
Use the 'Paste Special Skip Blanks' option and Excel will not overwrite existing values with blanks. 1. Select the range B1:B12. 2. Right click, and then click Copy.

3. Select cell A1. 4. Right click, and then click Paste Special... 5. Check Skip Blanks.

6. Click OK.

Transpose
Paste Special Transpose | Transpose Function Use the 'Paste Special Transpose' option to switch rows to columns or columns to rows in Excel. You can also use the TRANSPOSE function.

Paste Special Transpose
To transpose data, execute the following steps. 1. Select the range A1:C1. 2. Right click, and then click Copy.

3. Select cell E2. 4. Right click, and then click Paste Special... 5. Check Transpose.

6. Click OK.

Transpose Function
To insert the TRANSPOSE function, execute the following steps. 1. First, select the new range of cells.

2. Type in =TRANSPOSE( 3. Select the range A1:C1 and close with a parenthesis.

4. Finish by pressing CTRL + SHIFT + ENTER.

Note: The formula bar indicates that this is an array formula by enclosing it in curly braces {}. To delete this array formula, select the range E2:E4 and press Delete.

Union and Intersect
This example illustrates how to get the union and intersection of two ranges in Excel. 1. Use a comma to get the union of two ranges.

Explanation: the SUM function reduces to =SUM(C4:D8) + SUM(D7:E11), 20. Borders for illustration only. 2. Use a space to get the intersection of two ranges.

Explanation: the SUM function reduces to =SUM(D7:D8), 2. Borders for illustration only.

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Formulas and Functions
Enter a Formula | Edit a Formula | Operator Precedence | Insert a Function | Copy/Paste a Formula A formula is an expression which calculates the value of a cell. Functions are predefined formulas and are already available in Excel. For example, cell A3 below contains a formula which adds the value of cell A2 to the value of cell A1.

For example, cell A3 below contains the SUM function which calculates the sum of the range A1:A2.

Enter a Formula
To enter a formula, execute the following steps. 1. Select a cell. 2. To let Excel know that you want to enter a formula, type an equal sign (=). 3. For example, type the formula A1+A2.

Tip: instead of typing A1 and A2, simply select cell A1 and cell A2.

4. Change the value of cell A1 to 3.

Excel automatically recalculates the value of cell A3. This is one of Excel's most powerful features!

Edit a Formula
When you select a cell, Excel shows the value or formula of the cell in the formula bar.

1. To edit a formula, click in the formula bar and change the formula.

2. Press Enter.

Operator Precedence
Excel uses a default order in which calculations occur. If a part of the formula is in parentheses, that part will be calculated first. It then performs multiplication or division calculations. Once this is complete, Excel will add and subtract the remainder of your formula. See the example below.

First, Excel performs multiplication (A1 * A2). Next, Excel adds the value of cell A3 to this result. Another example,

First, Excel calculates the part in parentheses (A2+A3). Next, it multiplies this result by the value of cell A1.

Insert a Function
Every function has the same structure. For example, SUM(A1:A4). The name of this function is SUM. The part between the brackets (arguments) means we give Excel the range A1:A4 as input. This function adds the values in cells A1, A2, A3 and A4. It's not easy to remember which function and which arguments to use for a specific task. Fortunately, the Insert Function feature in Excel helps you with this. To insert a function, execute the following steps. 1. Select a cell. 2. Click the Insert Function button.

The 'Insert Function' dialog box appears. 3. Search for a function or select a function from a category. For example, choose COUNTIF from the Statistical category.

4. Click OK. The 'Function Arguments' dialog box appears. 5. Click in the Range box and select the range A1:C2. 6. Click in the Criteria box and type >5. 7. Click OK.

Result. Excel counts the number of cells that are higher than 5.

Note: instead of using the Insert Function feature, simply type =COUNTIF(A1:C2,">5"). When you arrive at: =COUNTIF( instead of typing A1:C2, simply select the range A1:C2.

Copy/Paste a Formula
When you copy a formula, Excel automatically adjusts the cell references for each new cell the formula is copied to. To understand this, execute the following steps. 1. Enter the formula shown below into cell A4.

2a. Select cell A4, right click, and then click Copy (or press CTRL + c)...

...next, select cell B4, right click, and then click Paste under 'Paste Options:' (or press CTRL + v).

2b. You can also drag the formula to cell B4. Click on the lower right corner of cell A4 and drag it across to cell B4. This is much easier and gives the exact same result!

Result. The formula in cell B4 references the values in Column B.

Percent Change
The percent change formula is used very often in Excel. For example, to calculate the Monthly Change and Total Change. 1a. Select cell C3 and enter the formula shown below.

1b. Select cell C3 and apply a Percentage format.

We don't need to repeat step 1a and step 1b ten more times. 1c. Select cell C3, click on the lower right corner of cell C3 and drag it down to cell C13.

1d. Check if everything went alright.

2a. In a similar way, we can calculate the Total Change. This time we fix the reference to cell B2. Select cell D3 and enter the formula shown below.

2b. Select cell D3 and apply a Percentage format. 2c. Select cell D3, click on the lower right corner of cell D3 and drag it down to cell D13. 2d. Check if everything went alright.

Explanation: when we drag the formula down, the absolute reference ($B$2) stays the same, while the relative reference (B3) changes to B4, B5, B6, etc. Maybe this is one step too far for you at this stage, but it shows you one of the many other powerful features Excel has to offer.

Names in Formulas
Named Range | Named Constant | Name Manager Create a named range or a named constant and use these names in your formulas. This way you can make your formulas easier to understand.

Named Range
To create a named range, execute the following steps. 1. Select the range A1:A4. 2. On the Formulas tab, click Define Name.

3. Enter a name and click OK.

There's an even quicker way of doing this. 4. Select the range, type the name in the Name box and press Enter.

5. Now you can use this named range in your formulas. For example, sum Prices.

Named Constant
To create a named constant, execute the following steps. 1. On the Formulas tab, click Define Name. 2. Enter a name, type a value, and click OK.

3. Now you can use this named constant in your formulas.

Note: if the tax rate changes, use the Name Manager to edit the name and Excel automatically updates all the formulas that use TaxRate.

Name Manager
To edit and delete defined names, execute the following steps. 1. On the Formulas tab, click Name Manager.

2. For example, select TaxRate and click Edit.

Dynamic Named Range
A dynamic named range expands automatically when you add a value to the range. 1. For example, select the range A1:A4 and name it Prices. 2. Calculate the sum.

3. When you add a value to the range, Excel does not update the sum.

To expand the named range automatically when you add a value to the range, execute the following the following steps. 4. On the Formulas tab, click Name Manager.

5. Click Edit.

6. Click in the "Refers to" box and enter the formula =OFFSET($A$1,0,0,COUNTA($A:$A),1)

Explanation: The Offset function takes 5 arguments. Reference: $A$1, rows to offset: 0, columns to offset: 0, height: COUNTA($A:$A), width: 1. COUNTA($A:$A) counts the number of values in column A that are not empty. When you add a value to the range, COUNTA($A:$A) increases. As a result, the named range expands. 7. Click OK and Close. 8. Now, when you add a value to the range, Excel updates the sum automatically.

Paste Options
Paste | Values | Formulas | Formatting | Paste Special This example illustrates the various paste options in Excel. Cell B5 below contains the SUM function which calculates the sum of the range B2:B4. Furthermore, we changed the background color of this cell to yellow and added borders.

Paste
The Paste option pastes everything. 1. Select cell B5, right click, and then click Copy (or press CTRL + c). 2. Next, select cell F5, right click, and then click Paste under 'Paste Options:' (or press CTRL + v).

Result.

Values
The Values option pastes the result of the formula. 1. Select cell B5, right click, and then click Copy (or press CTRL + c). 2. Next, select cell D5, right click, and then click Values under 'Paste Options:'

Result.

Note: to quickly replace the formula in cell B5 with its own result, select cell B5, press F2 (to edit the formula) and press F9.

Formulas
The Formulas option only pastes the formula. 1. Select cell B5, right click, and then click Copy (or press CTRL + c).

2. Next, select cell F5, right click, and then click Formulas under 'Paste Options:'

Result.

Formatting
The Formatting option only pastes the formatting. 1. Select cell B5, right click, and then click Copy (or press CTRL + c). 2. Next, select cell D5, right click, and then click Formatting under 'Paste Options:'

Result.

Note: the Format Painter copy/pastes formatting even quicker.

Paste Special
The Paste Special dialog box offers many more paste options. To launch the Paste Special dialog box, execute the following steps.

1. Select cell B5, right click, and then click Copy (or press CTRL + c). 2. Next, select cell D5, right click, and then click Paste Special.

The Paste Special dialog box appears.

Note: here you can also find the paste options described above. You can also paste comments only, validation criteria only, use the source theme, all except borders, column widths, formulas and number formats, values and number formats. You can also use the Paste Special dialog box to perform quick operations, skip blanksand transpose data

Status Bar
The quickest way to see the average, count, numerical count, minimum, maximum or sum of selected cells is by taking a look at the status bar. 1. Select a range of cells.

2. Look at the status bar at the bottom of your window to see the sum of these cells.

3. Right click the status bar to add the average, count, numerical count, minimum or maximum.

Result:

Quick Operations
Use the 'Paste Special Operations' to quickly perform operations on a range of cells in Excel. 1. Select cell D3. 2. Right click, and then click Copy.

3. Select the range A1:B8. 4. Right click, and then click Paste Special... 5. Click Multiply.

Note: you can also Divide, Add or Subtract a value. 6. Click OK.

Note: all values are increased by 10 percent. Without this feature, you would have to create a temporary range (with formulas that multiply the values in the range A1:B8 by 1.1) and then replace the range A1:B8 by copy and pasting the temporary range as values.

Count and Sum Functions
Count | Countif | Countifs | Sum | Sumif | Sumifs The most used functions in Excel are the functions that count and sum. You can count and sum based on onecriteria or multiple criteria.

Count
To count the number of cells that contain numbers, use the COUNT function.

Countif
To count cells based on one criteria (for example, higher than 9), use the following COUNTIF function.

Countifs
To count cells based on multiple criteria (for example, green and higher than 9), use the following COUNTIFS function.

Sum
To sum a range of cells, use the SUM function.

Sumif
To sum cells based on one criteria (for example, higher than 9), use the following SUMIF function (two arguments).

To sum cells based on one criteria (for example, green), use the following SUMIF function (three arguments, last argument is the range to sum).

Sumifs
To sum cells based on multiple criteria (for example, blue and green), use the following SUMIFS function (first argument is the range to sum).

General note: in a similar way, you can use the AVERAGEIF and AVERAGEIFS function to average cells based on one or multiple criteria.

Count Text Occurrences
This example teaches you how to count the number of occurrences of text in a range. 1. For example, to count the number of cells that contain exactly star.

2. For example, to count the number of cells that contain exactly star + 1 character. A question mark (?) matches exactly one character.

3. For example, to count the number of cells that contain exactly star + a series of zero or more characters. An asterisk (*) matches a series of zero or more characters.

4. For example, to count the number of cells that contain star in any way. No matter what is before or after star, this function finds all the cells that contain star in any way.

5. For example, to count the number of cells that contain text.

Count Logical Values
Learn how to count the number of cells that contain logical values (TRUE and FALSE) in Excel. 1. For example, to count the number of cells that contain TRUE.

2. For example, to count the number of cells that contain FALSE.

3. For example, to count the number of cells that contain TRUE or FALSE.

Count Blank/Nonblank Cells
This example shows you how to count the number of blank and nonblank cells in Excel. 1. The COUNTBLANK function counts the number of blank cells.

2. The COUNTA function counts the number of nonblank cells. COUNTA stands for count all.

Sumproduct
To calculate the sum of the products of corresponding numbers in one or more ranges, use Excel's powerful SUMPRODUCT function. 1. For example, the SUMPRODUCT function below calculates the total amount spent.

Note: the SUMPRODUCT function performs this calculation: (2 * 1000) + (4 * 250) + (4 * 100) + (2 * 50) = 3500. 2. The ranges must have the same dimensions or Excel will display the #VALUE! error.

3. The SUMPRODUCT function treats any entries that are not numeric as if they were zeros.

Logical Functions
If Function | And Function | Or Function Learn how to use Excel's logical functions such as the IF, AND and OR function.

If Function
The IF function checks whether a condition is met, and returns one value if TRUE and another value if FALSE. 1. Select cell C2 and enter the following function.

The IF function returns Correct because the value in cell A1 is higher than 10.

And Function
The AND Function returns TRUE if all conditions are true and returns FALSE if any of the conditions are false. 1. Select cell D2 and enter the following formula.

The AND function returns FALSE because the value in cell B2 is not higher than 5. As a result the IF function returns Incorrect.

Or Function
The OR function returns TRUE if any of the conditions are TRUE and returns FALSE if all conditions are false. 1. Select cell E2 and enter the following formula.

The OR function returns TRUE because the value in cell A1 is higher than 10. As a result the IF function returns Correct. General note: the AND and OR function can check up to 255 conditions.

Nested If
The IF function can be nested, when you have multiple conditions to meet. The FALSE value is being replaced by another If function to make a further test. For example, look at the formula below. 1a. If cell A1 equals 1, the function returns Bad.

1b. If cell A1 equals 2, the function returns Good.

1c. If cell A1 equals 3, the function returns Excellent.

1d. If cell A1 equals another value, the function returns No Valid Score.

Here's another example. 2a. If cell A1 is less or equal to 10, the function returns 350.

2b. If cell A1 is greater than 10 and less or equal to 20, the function returns 700.

2c. If cell A1 is greater than 20 and less or equal to 30, the function returns 1400.

2d. If cell A1 is greater than 30, the function returns 2000.

Note: to slightly change the boundaries, you might want to use "<" instead of "<=" in your own formula.

Roll the Dice
This example teaches you how to simulate the roll of two dice in Excel. If you are in a hurry, simply download the Excel file. Note: the instructions below do not teach you how to format the worksheet. We assume that you know how to change font sizes, font styles, insert rows and columns, add borders, change background colors, etc. 1. At the moment, each cell contains the letter l (lowercase). With a Wingdings font style, these l's look like dots.

2. Enter the RANDBETWEEN function in cell C2.

3. Enter the formula shown below into the yellow cells. If we roll 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6, these cells should contain a dot.

4. Enter the formula shown below into the red cells. If we roll 4, 5 or 6, these cells should contain a dot.

5. Enter the formula shown below into the blue cells. If we roll 6, these cells should contain a dot.

6. Enter the formula shown below into the gray cell. If we roll 1, 3 or 5, this cell should contain a dot.

7. Copy the range C2:E5 and paste it to the range G2:I5. 8. Change the font color of cell C2 and cell G2 to green (so the numbers are not visible). 9. Click the command button on the sheet (or press F9). Result.

Cell References

Relative Reference

| Absolute Reference

| Mixed Reference

Cell references in Excel are very important. Understand the difference between relative, absolute and mixed reference, and you are on your way to success.

Relative Reference
By default, Excel uses relative reference. See the formula in cell D2 below. Cell D2 references (points to) cell B2 and cell C2. Both references are relative.

1. Select cell D2, click on the lower right corner of cell D2 and drag it down to cell D5.

Cell D3 references cell B3 and cell C3. Cell D4 references cell B4 and cell C4. Cell D5 references cell B5 and cell C5. In other words: each cell references its two neighbors on the left.

Absolute Reference
See the formula in cell E3 below. 1. To create an absolute reference to cell H3, place a $ symbol in front of the column letter and row number of cell H3 ($H$3) in the formula of cell E3.

2. Now we can quickly drag this formula to the other cells.

The reference to cell H3 is fixed (when we drag the formula down and across). As a result, the correct lengths and widths in inches will be calculated.

Mixed Reference
Sometimes we need a combination of relative and absolute reference (mixed reference). 1. See the formula in cell F2 below.

2. We want to copy this formula to the other cells quickly. Drag cell F2 across one cell, and look at the formula in cell G2.

Do you see what happens? The reference to the price should be a fixed reference to column B. Solution: place a $ symbol in front of the column letter of cell B2 ($B2) in the formula of cell F2. In a similar way, when we drag cell F2 down, the reference to the reduction should be a fixed reference to row 6. Solution: place a $ symbol in front of the row number of cell B6 (B$6) in the formula of cell F2. Result:

Note: we don't place a $ symbol in front of the row number of B2 (this way we allow the reference to change from B2 (Jeans) to B3 (Shirts) when we drag the formula down). In a similar way, we don't place a $ symbol in front of the column letter of B6 (this way we allow the reference to change from B6 (Jan) to C6 (Feb) and D6 (Mar) when we drag the formula across). 3. Now we can quickly drag this formula to the other cells.

The references to column B and row 6 are fixed.

Copy Exact Formula
When you copy a formula, Excel automatically adjusts the cell references for each new cell the formula is copied to. For example, cell A3 below contains a formula which adds the value of cell A2 to the value of cell A1.

When you copy this formula to cell B3 (select cell A3, press CTRL + c, select cell B3, press CTRL + v), the formula will automatically reference the values in Column B.

If you don't want this but instead want to copy the exact formula (without changing the cell references), execute the following easy steps. 1. Click in the formula bar and select the formula.

2. Press CTRL + c, and press Enter. 3. Select cell B3 and click in the formula bar again. 4. Press CTRL + v, and press Enter. Result:

Both cell A3 and cell B3 contain the exact same formula now

3D-reference
A 3D-reference in Excel refers to the same cell or range on multiple worksheets. First, we'll look at the alternative. 1. On the Company sheet, select cell B2 and type an equal sign =

2. Go to the North sheet, select cell B2 and type a +

3. Repeat step 2 for the Mid and South sheet. Result.

4. This is quite a lot of work. Instead of doing this, use the following 3D-reference: North:South!B2 as the argument for the SUM function.

5. If you add worksheets between North and South, this worksheet is automatically included in the formula in cell B2.

External References
Create External Reference | Alert | Edit Links An external reference in Excel is a reference to a cell or range of cells in another workbook. Below you can find the workbooks of three divisions (North, Mid and South).

Create External Reference
To create an external reference, execute the following steps. 1. Open all workbooks. 2. In the Company workbook, select cell B2 and type the equal sign = 3. On the View tab, click Switch Windows and then click North.

4. In the North workbook, select cell B2 and type a +

5. Repeat step 3 and 4 for the Mid and South workbook. 6. Remove the $ symbols in the formula of cell B2 and copy the formula to the other cells. Result.

Alert
Close all workbooks. Change a number in the workbook of a division. Close all workbooks again. Open the Company workbook. A. To update all links, click Enable Content. B. To not update the links, click the X.

Note: if you see another alert, click Update or Don't Update.

Edit Links
On the Data tab, in the Connections group, click the Edit links symbol to launch the Edit Links dialog box.

1. If you didn't update the links, you can still update the links here. Select a workbook and click Update Values to update the links to this workbook. Note how the Status changes to OK.

2. If you don't want to display the alert and update the links automatically, Click Startup Prompt, select the third option, and click OK.

Hyperlinks
Existing File or Web Page | Place in This Document To create a hyperlink, execute the following steps. 1. On the Insert tab, click Hyperlink.

The 'Insert Hyperlink' dialog box appears.

Existing File or Web Page
To create a link to an existing file or web page, execute the following steps. 1a. To create a link to an existing Excel file, select a file (use the Look in drop-down list, if necessary).

1b. To create a link to a web page, type the Text to display, Address, and click OK.

Result:

Note: if you want to change the text that appears when you hover over the link, click ScreenTip...

Place in This Document

To create a link to a place in this document, execute the following steps. 1. Click 'Place in This Document' under Link to. 2. Type the Text to display, cell reference, and click OK.

Result:

Note: if you want to change the text that appears when you hover over the link, click ScreenTip...

Text Functions
Join Strings | Left | Right | Mid | Len | Find | Substitute Excel has many functions to offer when it comes to manipulating text strings.

Join Strings
To join strings, use the & operator.

Note: to insert a space, use " "

Left
To extract the leftmost characters from a string, use the LEFT function.

Right
To extract the rightmost characters from a string, use the RIGHT function.

Mid
To extract a substring, starting in the middle of a string, use the MID function.

Note: started at position 5 (p) with length 3.

Len
To get the length of a string, use the LEN function.

Note: space (position 8) included!

Find
To find the position of a substring in a string, use the FIND function.

Note: string "am" found at position 3.

Substitute
To replace existing text with new text in a string, use the SUBSTITUTE function.

Separate Strings
This example teaches you how to separate strings in Excel.

The problem we are dealing with is that we need to tell Excel where we want to separate the string. In case of Smith, Mike the comma is at position 6 while in case of Williams, Janet the comma is at position 9. 1. To get the first name, use the formula below.

Explanation: to find the position of the comma, use the FIND function (position 6). To get the length of a string, use the LEN function (11 characters). =RIGHT(A2,LEN(A2)-FIND(",",A2)-1) reduces to =RIGHT(A2,11-6-1). =RIGHT(A2,4) extracts the 4 rightmost characters and gives the desired result (Mike). 2. To get the last name, use the following formula.

Explanation: to find the position of the comma, use the FIND function (position 6). =LEFT(A2,FIND(",", A2)-1) reduces to =LEFT(A2,6-1). =LEFT(A2,5) extracts the 5 leftmost characters and gives the desired result (Smith). 3. Select the range B2:C2 and drag it down.

Number of Instances
This example describes how to count the number of instances of text (or a number) in a cell. 1. Use the LEN functon to get the length of the string (25 characters, including spaces).

2. The SUBSTITUTE function replaces existing text with new text in a string. LEN(SUBSTITUTE(A1,B1,"")) equals 13 (the length of the string without the words dog). If we subtract this number from 25, we get the length of the dog instances (25-13=12).

3. Dividing this number by the length of the word dog (3), gives us the dog instances (12/3=4).

Number of Words

This example describes how to count the number of words in a cell. 1a. The TRIM function returns a string with extra spaces, starting spaces and ending spaces removed.

1b. To get the length of the string with normal spaces, we combine the LEN and TRIM function.

2a. The SUBSTITUTE function replaces existing text with new text in a text string. We use the SUBSTITUTE function to get the string without spaces.

2b. To get the length of the string without spaces, we combine the LEN and SUBSTITUTE function.

3. Now comes the simple trick. To get the number of words, we subtract the length of the string without spaces (10) from the length of the string with normal spaces (12) and add 1.

Text to Columns

To separate the contents of one Excel cell into separate columns, you can use the 'Convert Text to Columns Wizard'. For example, when you want to separate a list of full names into last and first names. 1. Select the range with full names.

2. On the Data tab, click Text to Columns.

The following dialog box appears. 3. Choose Delimited and click Next.

4. Clear all the checkboxes under Delimiters except for the Comma and Space checkbox. 5. Click Finish.

Note: This example has commas and spaces as delimiters. You may have other delimiters in your data. Experiment by checking and unchecking the different checkboxes. You get a live preview of how your data will be separated. Result:

Lower/Upper Case
Convert a text string to lower, upper or proper case in Excel. 1. Use the LOWER function to convert all letters in a text string to lowercase.

2. Use the UPPER function to convert all letters in a text string to uppercase.

3. Use the PROPER function to convert a text string to proper case. That is, the first letter in each word in uppercase, and all other letters to lowercase.

Remove Unwanted Characters
The TRIM function returns a string with extra spaces, starting spaces and ending spaces removed. The CLEAN function removes nonprintable characters from a string. 1. For example, cell A1 below contains the string " Excel Easy "

Note: the TRIM function returns the string "Excel Easy". 2. For example, cell A1 below contains a nonprintable character.

Note: the CLEAN function removes this nonprintable character. Text imported from other applications may contain nonprintable characters.

Compare Text
This example shows two ways to compare text in Excel. One is case-sensitive and one is case-insensitive. 1. Use the EXACT function (case-sensitive).

2. Use the formula =A1=B1 (case-insensitive).

Find vs Search
The FIND function and the SEARCH function are very similar to each other. This example shows the difference. 1. To find the position of a substring in a string, use the FIND function. FIND is case-sensitive.

2. To find the position of a substring in a string, use the SEARCH function. SEARCH is case-insensitive.

Note: string "excel" found at position 11. Even though it's actually the string "Excel" 3. The SEARCH function is more versatile. You can use wildcard characters when you use this function.

Note: A question mark (?) matches exactly one character. An asterisk (*) matches a series of zero or more characters. 4. One other interesting point to mention about the FIND and the SEARCH function is that they have a 3rd optional argument. You can use this argument to indicate the position, counting from the left, at which you want to start searching.

Note: string "o" found at position 5.

Note: string "o" found at position 7 (started searching at position 6)

Substitute vs Replace
This example shows the difference between the SUBSTITUTE function and the REPLACE function. 1a. If you know the text to be replaced, use the SUBSTITUTE function.

1b. The SUBSTITUTE function has a 4th optional argument. You can use this argument to indicate which occurrence you want to substitute.

2. If you know the position of the text to be replaced, use the REPLACE function.

Note: started at position 1 with length 3.

Lookup & Reference Functions
VLookup | HLookup | Match | Index | Choose Learn all about Excel's lookup & reference functions such as the VLOOKUP, HLOOKUP, MATCH, INDEX and CHOOSE function.

VLookup
The VLOOKUP (Vertical lookup) function looks for a value in the leftmost column of a table, and then returns a value in the same row from another column you specify. 1. Insert the VLOOKUP function shown below.

Explanation: the VLOOKUP function looks for the ID (104) in the leftmost column of the range $E$4:$G$7 and returns the value in the same row from the third column (third argument is set to 3). The fourth argument is set to FALSE to return an exact match or a #N/A error if not found. 2. Drag the VLOOKUP function in cell B2 down to cell B11.

Note: when we drag the VLOOKUP function down, the absolute reference ($E$4:$G$7) stays the same, while the relative reference (A2) changes to A3, A4, A5, etc.

HLookup
In a similar way, you can use the HLOOKUP (Horizontal lookup) function.

Match
The MATCH function returns the position of a value in a given range.

Note: Yellow found at position 3 in the range E4:E7. The third argument is optional. Set this argument to 0 to return the position of the value that is exactly equal to lookup_value (A2) or a #N/A error if not found.

Index
The INDEX function returns a specific value in a two-dimensional or one-dimensional range.

Note: 92 found at the intersection of row 3 and column 2 in the range E4:F7.

Note: 97 found at position 3 in the range E4:E7.

Choose
The CHOOSE function returns a value from a list of values, based on a position number.

Note: Boat found at position 3.

Tax Rates
Sometimes you are not looking for an exact match when you use the VLOOKUP function. For example, when you want to calculate the tax on an income. The following tax rates apply to individuals who are residents of Australia.

Taxable income

Tax on this income

0 - $6,000 $6,001 - $35,000 $80,001 $180,000

Nil 15c for each $1 over $6,000

$35,001 - $80,000 $4,350 plus 30c for each $1 over $35,000 $17,850 plus 38c for each $1 over $80,000

$180,001 and over $55,850 plus 45c for each $1 over

$180,000

Example: if income is 37000, tax equals 4350 + 0.3 * (37000 - 35000) = 4350 + 600 = $4950

To automatically calculate the tax on an income, execute the following steps. 1. On the second sheet, create the following range and name it Rates.

2. We already know how the VLOOKUP function can return an exact match or a #N/A error if not found, by setting the fourth argument to FALSE. However, when you set this argument to TRUE, it returns an exact match or if not found, it returns the largest value smaller than lookup_value (A2). That's exactly what we want!

Explanation: Excel cannot find 37000 in the first column of Rates. However, it can find 35000 (the largest value smaller than 37000). As a result, it returns 4350 (col_index_num, the third argument, is set to 2). 3. Now, what's left is the remainder of the equation, + 0.3 * (37000 - 35000). This is easy. We can return 0.3 by setting col_index_num to 3 and return 35000 by setting col_index_num to 1. The complete formula below does the trick.

Note: when you set the fourth argument of the VLOOKUP function to TRUE, the first column of the table must be sorted in ascending order.

Offset
The Offset function in Excel returns a cell or range of cells that is a specified number of rows and columns from a cell or range of cells. 1. The Offset function below returns the cell that is 3 rows below and 2 columns to the right of cell A2. The Offset function returns a cell because the height and width are both set to 1.

Result:

2. The Offset function below returns the 1 x 2 range that is 5 rows below and 1 column to the right of cell A2. The SUM function calculates the sum of this range.

Result:

Note: to return a range (without calculating the sum), select a range of the same size before you insert the Offset function. If you want to return a cell or range of cells that is a specified number of rows above or columns to the left, enter a negative number.

Left Lookup
A drawback of the VLOOKUP function is that it can only look up values in the leftmost column of a table. However, sometimes you need to look up a value in any column and return the corresponding value to the left. To achieve this, simply use the INDEX and the MATCH function. 1. The MATCH function returns the position of a value in a given range.

Explanation: 104 found at position 4 in the range $G$4:$G$7.

2. Use this result and the INDEX function to return the 4th value in the range $E$4:$E$7.

3. Drag the formula in cell B2 down to cell B11.

Note: when we drag this formula down, the absolute references ($E$4:$E$7 and $G$4:$G$7) stay the same, while the relative reference (A2) changes to A3, A4, A5, etc.

Two-way Lookup
This example teaches you how to lookup a value in a two-dimensional range. We use the MATCH and INDEX function. Below you can find the sales of different ice cream flavors in each month. 1. To find the row number of Feb, use the MATCH function.

2. To find the column number of Chocolate, use the MATCH function.

3. To find the sales of Chocolate in February, use the INDEX function.

4. Put it all together.

Locate Maximum Value
This example teaches you how to find the cell address of the maximum value in a column. 1. First, we use the MAX function to find the maximum value in column A.

2. Second, we use the MATCH function to find the row number of the maximum value.

Explanation: the MATCH function reduces to =MATCH(12,A:A,0), 7. The MATCH function returns the position of the maximum value in column A. Set the third argument to 0 to return an exact match. 3. Finally, we use the ADDRESS function to return the cell address.

Explanation: the ADDRESS function reduces to =ADDRESS(7,1), $A$7. The first argument specifies the row number. The second argument specifies the column number.

Statistical Functions
Average | Averageif | Median | Mode | Standard Deviation | Min | Max | Large | Small Below you can find an overview of some very useful statistical functions in Excel.

Average
To calculate the average of a range of cells, use the AVERAGE function.

Averageif
To average cells based on one criteria, use the AVERAGEIF function. For example, to calculate the average excluding zeros.

Note: <> means not equal to. The AVERAGEIF function is similar to the SUMIF function.

Median
To find the median (or middle number), use the MEDIAN function.

Check:

Mode
To find the most frequently occurring number, use the MODE function.

Standard Deviation
To calculate the standard deviation, use the STEDV function.

Min
To find the minimum value, use the MIN function.

Max
To find the maximum value, use the MAX function.

Large
To find the third largest number, use the following LARGE function.

Check:

Small
To find the second smallest number, use the following SMALL function.

Check:

Tip: Excel can generate most of these results with the click of a button. Our Descriptive Statistics example shows you how.

Indirect
The INDIRECT function returns the reference specified by a text string. 1. For example, the INDIRECT function below reduces to =INDIRECT("C2"), =C2, 5

Do we really need the INDIRECT function for this? Yes. Below you can find the result without using the INDIRECT function.

2. For example, the function below reduces to =SUM(INDIRECT("E3:E6")), =SUM(E3:E6), 27

Note: the & operator is used to join strings. Border for illustration only. 3. For example, the function below reduces to =AVERAGE(Scores), 9

Note: the named range Scores refers to the range C2:C4.

Negative Numbers to Zero
A clever Excel trick to change negative numbers to zero but leave positive numbers unchanged. Below you can find two columns with numbers. To subtract the numbers in column B from the numbers in column A, execute the following steps. 1. Select cell C1. 2. Enter the formula =A1-B1 3. Click the lower right corner of cell C1 and drag the formula down.

Result:

4. To change the negative numbers to zero but leave the positive numbers unchanged, instead of =A1-B1, use =MAX(0,A1-B1) and drag the function down. Result:

Explanation: the MAX function returns the maximum of two values. If the result of the formula is negative, the function returns 0.

Random Numbers
Rand | Randbetween Excel has two useful functions when it comes to creating random numbers. The RAND and RANDBETWEENfunction.

Rand
The RAND function creates a random decimal number between 0 and 1. 1. Select cell A1. 2. Type RAND() and press Enter. The RAND function takes no arguments.

3. To create a list of random numbers, simply click on the lower right corner of cell A1 and drag it down.

Note that cell A1 has changed. That is because random numbers change every time a cell on the sheet is calculated. 4. If you don't want this, simply copy the random numbers and paste them as values.

5. Select cell C1 and look at the formula bar. This cell holds a value now and not the RAND function.

Randbetween
The RANDBETWEEN function returns a random whole number between two boundaries. 1. Select cell A1. 2. Type RANDBETWEEN(50,75) and press Enter.

3. If you want to create random decimal numbers between 50 and 75, modify the RAND function as follows:

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Rank
The RANK function returns the rank of a number in a list of numbers. 1. If the third argument is omitted (or 0), Excel ranks the largest number first, second largest number second, etc.

Note: when we drag the RANK function down, the absolute reference ($A$1:$A$9) stays the same, while the relative reference (A1) changes to A2, A3, A4, etc. 2. If the third argument is 1, Excel ranks the smallest number first, second smallest number second, etc.

3. Use the RANK.AVG function to return the average rank if more than one number has the same rank.

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Percentiles and Quartiles
This example teaches you how to use the PERCENTILE and QUARTILE function in Excel. Below you can find a list of scores (green fill for illustration only). 1. Use the PERCENTILE function shown below to calculate the 30th percentile. Excel returns the value 12.7. This means that 30% (6 out of 20) of the scores are lower or equal to 12.7

Note: The second argument of the PERCENTILE function must be a decimal number between 0 and 1. Excel uses a slightly different algorithm to calculate percentiles and quartiles than you find in most statistics books. If you're interested, download the Excel file. 2. Use the PERCENTILE function shown below to calculate the 90th percentile. Excel returns the value 61.7. This means that 90% (18 out of 20) of the scores are lower or equal to 61.7

3. Use the QUARTILE function shown below to calculate the 1st quartile. Excel returns the value 11.25. This means that 25% (5 out of 20) of the scores are lower or equal to 11.25

Note: The second argument of the QUARTILE function must be a number between 0 and 4. PERCENTILE(A1:A20,0.25) gives the exact same result. It's up to you which function you would like to use for quartiles. Below you can find an overview.

Minimum Value 1st Quarter Median 3rd Quarter Maximum Value

PERCENTILE(A1:A20,0)

QUARTILE(A1:A20,0) MIN(A1:A20)

PERCENTILE(A1:A20,0.25) QUARTILE(A1:A20,1) PERCENTILE(A1:A20,0.50) QUARTILE(A1:A20,2) MEDIAN(A1:A20) PERCENTILE(A1:A20,0.75) QUARTILE(A1:A20,3) PERCENTILE(A1:A20,1) QUARTILE(A1:A20,4) MAX(A1:A20)

Forecast and Trend
When you add a trendline to an Excel chart, Excel can display the equation in a chart (see below). You can use this equation to calculate future sales. The FORECAST and TREND function give the exact same result.

Explanation: Excel uses the method of least squares to find a line that best fits the points. The R-squared value equals 0.9295, which is a good fit. The closer to 1, the better the line fits the data. 1. Use the equation to calculate future sales.

2. Use the FORECAST function to calculate future sales.

Note: when we drag the FORECAST function down, the absolute references ($B$2:$B$11 and $A$2:$A$11) stay the same, while the relative reference (A12) changes to A13 and A14. 3. If you prefer to use an array formula, use the TREND function to calculate future sales.

Note: first, select the range E12:E14. Next, type =TREND(B2:B11,A2:A11,A12:A14). Finish by pressing CTRL + SHIFT + ENTER. The formula bar indicates that this is an array formula by enclosing it in curly braces {}. To delete this array formula, select the range E12:E14 and press Delete.

Round
Round | RoundUp | RoundDown This chapter illustrates three functions to round numbers in Excel. The ROUND, ROUNDUP andROUNDDOWN function. Before your start: if you round a number, you lose precision. If you don't want this, show fewer decimal placeswithout changing the number itself.

Round
1. Round a number to two decimal places.

Note: 1, 2, 3, and 4 get rounded down. 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9 get rounded up. In this example, 114.7211, 114.7221, 114.7231 and 114.7241 get rounded down to 114.72 and 114.7251, 114.7261, 114.7271, 114.7281 and 114.7291 get rounded up to 114.73. 2. Round a number to one decimal place.

3. Round a number to the nearest integer.

4. Round a number to the nearest 10.

5. Round a number to the nearest 100.

RoundUp
The ROUNDUP function always rounds a number up (away from zero). For example, round a number up to one decimal place.

RoundDown
The ROUNDDOWN function always rounds a number down (toward zero). For example, round a number down to the nearest integer.

Chop off Decimals
Int | Trunc This example illustrates two functions to chop off decimals in Excel. The INT and the TRUNC function.

Int
The INT (Integer) function rounds a number down to the nearest integer.

Conclusion: the INT function only chops off decimals from positive numbers.

Trunc
The TRUNC (Truncate) function always chops off decimals.

The TRUNC function can keep any number of decimals and chop off the rest.

Nearest Multiple
Mround | Ceiling | Floor This example illustrates three functions to round numbers to a multiple of x in Excel. The MROUND, CEILINGand the FLOOR function.

Mround
1. For example, round a number to the nearest multiple of 10.

2. For example, round a number to the nearest multiple of 5.

Ceiling
The same as MROUND but rounds up.

Floor
The same as MROUND but rounds down.

Even and Odd

Even

| Odd

| Even or Odd?

This example illustrates the EVEN and the ODD function in Excel. It also shows you how to determine if a number is even or odd.

Even
1. Rounds a positive number up to the nearest even integer.

2. Rounds a negative number down to the nearest even integer.

Odd
1. Rounds a positive number up to the nearest odd integer.

2. Rounds a negative number down to the nearest odd integer.

Even or Odd?
One way to determine if a number is even or odd is to use the MOD function. The MOD function gives the remainder of a division. 1. Even numbers divided by 2 always give a remainder of 0. For example, 28 is divided by 2 (exactly 14 times) to give a remainder of 0. As a result, the IF function returns Even.

2. Odd numbers divided by 2 always give a remainder of 1. For example, 29 is divided by 2 (14 times) to give a remainder of 1 . As a result, the IF function returns Odd.

Formula Errors
##### error | #NAME? error | #VALUE! error | #DIV/0! error | #REF! error This chapter teaches you how to deal with some common formula errors in Excel.

##### error
When your cell contains this error code, the column isn't wide enough to display the value.

1. Click on the right border of the column A header and increase the column width.

Tip: double click the right border of the column A header to automatically fit the widest cell in column A.

#NAME? error

The #NAME? error occurs when Excel does not recognize text in a formula.

1. Simply correct SU to SUM.

#VALUE! error
Excel displays the #VALUE! error when a formula has the wrong type of argument.

1a.

Change

the

value

of

cell

A3

to

a

number.

1b. Use a function to ignore cells that contain text.

#DIV/0! error

Excel displays the #DIV/0! error when a formula tries to divide a number by 0 or an empty cell.

1a.

Change

the

value

of

cell

A2

to

a

value

that

is

not

equal

to

0.

1b. Prevent the error from being displayed by using the logical function IF.

Explanation: if cell A2 equals 0, an empty string is displayed. If not, the result of the formula A1/A2 is displayed.

#REF! error
Excel displays the #REF! error when a formula refers to a cell that is not valid. 1. Cell C1 references cell A1 and cell B1.

2. Delete column B. To achieve this, right click the column B header and click Delete.

3. Select cell B1. The reference to cell B1 is not valid anymore.

4. To fix this error, you can either delete +#REF! in the formula of cell B1 or you can undo your action by clicking Undo in the Quick Access Toolbar (or press CTRL + z).

IfError
This example illustrates the IFERROR function in Excel. 1. For example, Excel displays the #DIV/0! error when a formula tries to divide a number by 0.

2. Use the IFERROR function. If a cell contains an error, an empty string ("") is displayed.

IsError
This example illustrates the ISERROR function in Excel. 1. For example, Excel displays the #DIV/0! error when a formula tries to divide a number by 0.

The ISERROR function checks whether a value is an error and returns TRUE or FALSE. 2. Use the IF and the ISERROR function. If a cell contains an error, the value 5 is returned. If not, the value 100 is returned.

Circular Reference
A formula in a cell that directly or indirectly refers to its own cell is called a circular reference. This is not possible. 1. For example, the formula in cell A3 below directly refers to its own cell. This is not possible.

Note: Excel returns a 0 if you accept this circular reference. 2a. For example, the formula in cell C2 below refers to cell C1.

2b. The formula in cell C3 refers to cell C2.

2c. The formula in cell C4 refers to cell C3.

2d. So far, everything's OK. Now change the value in cell C1 to the formula =C4. Cell C1 refers to cell C4, cell C4 refers to cell C3, cell C3 refers to cell C2, and cell C2 refers to cell C1. In other words, the formula in cell C1 indirectly refers to its own cell. This is not possible.

Note: Excel returns a 0 if you accept this circular reference. 3. To find your circular references, on the Formulas tab, click the down arrow next to Error Checking, and click Circular References.

Formula Auditing
Trace Precedents | Remove Arrows | Trace Dependents | Show Formulas | Error Checking | Evaluate Formula Formula auditing in Excel allows you to display the relationship between formulas and cells. The example below helps you master Formula Auditing quickly and easily.

Trace Precedents
You have to pay $96.00. To show arrows that indicate which cells are used to calculate this value, execute the following steps. 1. Select cell C13. 2. On the Formulas tab, in the Formula Auditing group, click Trace Precedents.

Result:

As expected, Total cost and Group size are used to calculate the Cost per person. 3. Click Trace Precedents again.

As expected, the different costs are used to calculate the Total cost.

Remove Arrows
To remove the arrows, execute the following steps. 1. On the Formulas tab, in the Formula Auditing group, click Remove Arrows.

Trace Dependents
To show arrows that indicate which cells depend on a selected cell, execute the following steps. 1. Select cell C12. 2. On the Formulas tab, in the Formula Auditing group, click Trace Dependents.

Result:

As expected, the Cost per person depends on the Group size.

Show Formulas
By default, Excel shows the results of formulas. To show the formulas instead of their results, execute the following steps. 1. On the Formulas tab, in the Formula Auditing group, click Show Formulas.

Result:

Note: instead of clicking Show Formulas, you can also press CTRL + (`). You can find this key above the tab key.

Error Checking
To check for common errors that occur in formulas, execute the following steps. 1. Enter the value 0 into cell C12.

2. On the Formulas tab, in the Formula Auditing group, click Error Checking.

Result. Excel finds an error in cell C13. The formula tries to divide a number by 0.

Evaluate Formula
To debug a formula by evaluating each part of the formula individually, execute the following steps. 1. Select cell C13. 2. On the Formulas tab, in the Formula Auditing group, click Evaluate Formula.

3. Click Evaluate four times.

Excel shows the formula result.

Floating Point Errors
Excel stores and calculates floating point numbers. Sometimes, the result of a formula is a very close approximation. 1. For example, take a look at the formulas below. At first glance, everything looks alright.

2. However, if we show 16 decimal places, we can see that one result is a very close approximation.

You don't have to worry about floating point errors. They are rare. Even if your worksheet contains a floating point error, in most cases, this causes no problems. 3. However, if you compare the value in cell C8 with another value, this can happen.

4. Use the ROUND function to fix this.

Spelling
Learn how to check the spelling of text in Excel. You can also add words to your custom dictionary or AutoCorrect list. 1. On the Review tab, click Spelling.

2. Select a suggestion. 3. Click Change to correct the misspelling in cell A2.

4. Click Change All to correct all instances of this misspelling (cell A2 and cell A7).

5. Click Ignore Once to ignore the misspelling in cell A2. Click Ignore All to ignore all instances of this misspelling. 6a. Click Add to Dictionary to add this word to your custom dictionary.

6b. To edit this list, click Options (or if you don't have this screen open, click File, Options, Proofing), and then click Custom Dictionaries.

7a. Click AutoCorrect to add this word to your AutoCorrect list (every time you type anwer, Excel will replace it with answer).

7b. To edit this list, click Options (or if you don't have this screen open, click File, Options, Proofing), and then click AutoCorrect Options.

Note: you can also add abbreviations to your AutoCorrect list. For example, if you type ee.com, Excel can replace it with www.excel-easy.com.

Array Formulas
Without Array Formula | With Array Formula | F9 Key This chapter helps you understand array formulas in Excel. Single cell array formulas perform multiple calculations in one cell.

Without Array Formula
Without using an array formula, we would execute the following steps to find the greatest progress. 1. First, we would calculate the progress of each student.

2. Next, we would use the MAX function to find the greatest progress.

With Array Formula
We don't need to store the range in column D. Excel can store this range in its memory. A range stored in Excel's memory is called an array constant. 1. We already know that we can find the progress of the first student by using the formula below.

2. To find the greatest progress (don't be overwhelmed), we add the MAX function, replace C2 with C2:C6 and B2 with B2:B6.

3. Finish by pressing CTRL + SHIFT + ENTER.

Note: The formula bar indicates that this is an array formula by enclosing it in curly braces {}. Do not type these yourself. They will disappear when you edit the formula. Explanation: The range (array constant) is stored in Excel's memory, not in an range. The array constant looks as follows: {19;33;63;48;13} This array constant is used as an argument for the MAX function, giving a result of 63.

F9 Key
When working with array formulas, you can have a look at these array constants yourself. 1. Select C2:C6-B2:B6 in the formula.

2. Press F9.

That looks good. Elements in a vertical array constant are separated by semicolons. Elements in a horizontal array constant are separated by commas.

Count Errors
This example shows you how to create an array formula that counts the number of errors in a range. 1. We use the IF function and the ISERROR function to check for an error.

Explanation: the IF function returns 1, if an error is found. If not, it returns an empty string. 2. To count the errors (don't be overwhelmed), we add the COUNT function and replace A1 with A1:C3.

3. Finish by pressing CTRL + SHIFT + ENTER.

Note: The formula bar indicates that this is an array formula by enclosing it in curly braces {}. Do not type these yourself. They will disappear when you edit the formula. Explanation: The range (array constant) created by the IF function is stored in Excel's memory, not in an range. The array constant looks as follows: {1,"",1;"","","";"","",1} This array constant is used as an argument for the COUNT function, giving a result of 3. 4. To count specific errors, use the COUNTIF function. For example, to count the number of cells that contain the #DIV/0! error.

Count Unique Values
This example shows you how to create an array formula that counts unique values. 1. We use the COUNTIF function. For example, to count the number of 5's, use the following function.

2. To count the unique values (don't be overwhelmed), we add the SUM function, 1/, and replace 5 with A1:A6.

3. Finish by pressing CTRL + SHIFT + ENTER.

Note: The formula bar indicates that this is an array formula by enclosing it in curly braces {}. Do not type these yourself. They will disappear when you edit the formula. Explanation: The range (array constant) created by the COUNTIF function is stored in Excel's memory, not in an range. The array constant looks as follows: {3;1;1;1;3;3} - (three 7's, one sun, one moon, one 5, three 7's, three 7's) This {1/3;1/1;1/1;1/1;1/3;1/3} reduces to:

This array constant is used as an argument for the SUM function, giving a result of 1/3+1+1+1+1/3+1/3 = 4.

Count with Or Criteria
Counting with Or criteria in Excel can be tricky. This article shows several easy to follow examples. 1. We start simple. For example, we want to count the number of cells that contain Google or Facebook (one column).

2a. However, if we want to count the number of rows that contain Google or Stanford (two columns), we cannot simply use the COUNTIF function twice (see the picture below). Rows that contain Google and Stanford are counted twice, but they should only be counted once. 4 is the answer we are looking for.

2b. What we need is an array formula. We use the IF function to check if Google or Stanford occurs.

Explanation: TRUE = 1, FALSE = 0. For row 1, the IF function evaluates to IF(TRUE+TRUE,1,0), IF(2,1,0), 1. So the first row will be counted. For row 2, the IF function evaluates to IF(FALSE+FALSE,1,0), IF(0,1,0), 0. So the second row will not be counted. For row 3, the IF function evaluates to IF(FALSE+TRUE,1,0), IF(1,1,0), 1. So the third row will be counted, etc. 2c. All we need is a SUM function that counts these 1's. To achieve this (don't be overwhelmed), we add the SUM function and replace A1 with A1:A8 and B1 with B1:B8.

2d. Finish by pressing CTRL + SHIFT + ENTER.

Note: The formula bar indicates that this is an array formula by enclosing it in curly braces {}. Do not type these yourself. They will disappear when you edit the formula. Explanation: The range (array constant) created by the IF function is stored in Excel's memory, not in an range. The array constant looks as follows: {1;0;1;0;1;0;1;0} This array constant is used as an argument for the SUM function, giving a result of 4. 3. We can go one step further. For example, we want to count the number of rows that contain Google andStanford or Columbia.

Sum Every nth Row
This example shows you how to create an array formula that sums every nth row in Excel. We will show it for n = 3, but you can do this for any number. 1. The ROW function returns the row number of a cell.

2. The MOD function gives the remainder of a division. For example, for the first row, MOD(1,3) equals 1. 1 is divided by 3 (0 times) to give a remainder of 1. For the third row, MOD(3,3) equals 0. 3 is divided by 3 (exactly 1 time) to give a remainder of 0. As a result, the formula returns 0 for every 3th row.

Note: change the 3 to 4 to sum every 4th row, to 5 to sum every 5th row, etc. 3. Slightly change the formula as shown below.

4. To get the sum of the product of these two ranges (FALSE=0, TRUE=1), use the SUM function and finish by pressing CTRL + SHIFT + ENTER.

Note: The formula bar indicates that this is an array formula by enclosing it in curly braces {}. Do not type these yourself. They will disappear when you edit the formula. Explanation: The product of these two ranges (array constant) is stored in Excel's memory, not in an range. The array constant looks as follows. {0;0;5;0;0;66;0;0;21} This array constant is used as an argument for the SUM function, giving a result of 92.

Sum Largest Numbers
This example shows you how to create an array formula that sums the largest numbers in a range. 1. We use the LARGE function. For example, to find the second to largest number, use the following function.

2. To sum the 4 largest numbers (don't be overwhelmed), add the SUM function and replace 2 with {1,2,3,4}.

3. Finish by pressing CTRL + SHIFT + ENTER.

Note: The formula bar indicates that this is an array formula by enclosing it in curly braces {}. Do not type these yourself. They will disappear when you edit the formula. Explanation: The range (array constant) created by the LARGE function is stored in Excel's memory, not in an range. The array constant looks as follows. {22,10,8,6} This array constant is used as an argument for the SUM function, giving a result of 46.

Sum Range with Errors
This example shows you how to create an array formula that sums a range with errors. 1. We use the IF and ISERROR function to check for an error.

Explanation: the IF function returns 0, if an error is found. If not, it returns the value of the cell. 2. To sum the range with errors (don't be overwhelmed), we add the SUM function and replace A1 with A1:A7.

3. Finish by pressing CTRL + SHIFT + ENTER.

Note: The formula bar indicates that this is an array formula by enclosing it in curly braces {}. Do not type these yourself. They will disappear when you edit the formula. Explanation: The range (array constant) created by the If function is stored in Excel's memory, not in an range. The array constant looks as follows: {0;5;4;0;0;1;3} This array constant is used as an argument for the SUM function, giving a result of 13.

Sum with Or Criteria

Summing with Or criteria in Excel can be tricky. This article shows several easy to follow examples. 1. We start simple. For example, we want to sum the cells that meet the following criteria: Google or Facebook (one criteria range).

2a. However, if we want to sum the cells that meet the following criteria: Google or Stanford (two criteria ranges), we cannot simply use the SUMIF function twice (see the picture below). Cells that meet the criteria Google and Stanford are added twice, but they should only be added once. 10 is the answer we are looking for.

2b. We need an array formula. We use the IF function to check if Google or Stanford occurs.

Explanation: TRUE = 1, FALSE = 0. For row 1, the IF function evaluates to IF(TRUE+TRUE,1,0)*3, IF(2,1,0)*3, 3. So the value 3 will be added. For row 2, the IF function evaluates to IF(FALSE+FALSE,1,0)*5, IF(0,1,0)*5, 0. So the value 5 will not be added. For row 3, the IF function evaluates to IF(FALSE+TRUE,1,0)*2, IF(1,1,0)*2, 2. So the value 2 will be added, etc. 2c. All we need is a SUM function that sums these values. To achieve this (don't be overwhelmed), we add the SUM function and replace A1 with A1:A8, B1 with B1:B8 and C1 with C1:C8.

2d. Finish by pressing CTRL + SHIFT + ENTER.

Note: The formula bar indicates that this is an array formula by enclosing it in curly braces {}. Do not type these yourself. They will disappear when you edit the formula. Explanation: The range (array constant) created by the IF function is stored in Excel's memory, not in an range. The array constant looks as follows: {1;0;1;0;1;0;1;0} multiplied by C1:C8 this yields: {3;0;2;0;4;0;1;0} This latter array constant is used as an argument for the SUM function, giving a result of 10. 3. We can go one step further. For example, we want to sum the cells that meet the following criteria: Googleand Stanford or Columbia.

Two-column Lookup

This example teaches you how to perform a two-column lookup in Excel. See the example below. We want to look up the salary of James Clark, not James Smith, not James Anderson. 1. To join strings, use the & operator.

2. The MATCH function returns the position of a value in a given range. Insert the MATCH function shown below. 3. Finish by pressing CTRL + SHIFT + ENTER.

Note: The formula bar indicates that this is an array formula by enclosing it in curly braces {}. Do not type these yourself. They will disappear when you edit the formula. Explanation: The range (array constant) A2:A8&B2:B8 is stored in Excel's memory, not in an range. The array constant looks as follows: {"JamesSmith";"JamesAnderson";"JamesClark";"JohnLewis";"JohnWalker";"MarkReed";"RichardLopez"} This array constant is used as an argument for the MATCH function, giving a result of 3 (JamesClark found at position 3). 4. Use this result and the INDEX function to return the 3rd value in the range C2:C8.

Most Frequently Occurring Word
This example teaches you how to find the most frequently occurring word in Excel. You can use the MODE function to find the most frequently occurring number. However, the MODE function only works with numbers.

You can use the COUNTIF function to count the number of occurrences of each word. However, we are looking for a single formula that returns the most frequently occurring word (circle in our example).

To find the most frequently occurring word, execute the following steps.

1. The MATCH function returns the position of a value in a given range.

Explanation: circle (A7) found at position 2 in the range A1:A7. Set the third argument to 0 to return an exact match. 2. To find the position of the most frequently occurring word (don't be overwhelmed), we add the MODE function and replace A7 with A1:A7. 3. Finish by pressing CTRL + SHIFT + ENTER.

Note: The formula bar indicates that this is an array formula by enclosing it in curly braces {}. Do not type these yourself. They will disappear when you edit the formula. Explanation: The range (array constant) created by the MATCH function is stored in Excel's memory, not in an range. The array constant looks as follows: {1;2;2;2;5;5;2} - (triangle found at position 1, circle found at position 2, circle found at position 2, etc.) This array constant is used as an argument for the MODE function, giving a result of 2 (the position of the most frequently occurring word). 4. Use this result and the INDEX function to return the 2nd word in the range A1:A7, the most frequently occurring word.

System of Linear Equations
This example shows you how to solve a system of linear equations in Excel. For example, we have the following system of linear equations:

5x + 1y + 8z = 46 4x - 2y = 12

6x + 7y + 4z = 50
In matrix notation, this can be written as AX = B

5 1 8 with A = 4 -2 0 6 7 4
-1

x , X= y z

46 , B = 12 50
-1 -1

If A (the inverse of A) exists, we can multiply both sides by A to obtain X = A B. To solve this system of linear equations in Excel, execute the following steps. 1. Use the MINVERSE function to return the inverse matrix of A. First, select the range B6:D8. Next, insert the MINVERSE function shown below. Finish by pressing CTRL + SHIFT + ENTER.

Note: the formula bar indicates that the cells contain an array formula. Therefore, you cannot delete a single result. To delete the results, select the range B6:D8 and press Delete. 2. Use the MMULT function to return the product of matrix A and B. First, select the range G6:G8. Next, insert the MMULT function shown below. Finish by pressing CTRL + SHIFT + ENTER.
-1

3. Put it all together. First, select the range G6:G8. Next, insert the formula shown below. Finish by pressing CTRL + SHIFT + ENTER.

Sort
One Column | Multiple Columns You can sort your Excel data on one column or multiple columns. You can sort in ascending or descending order.

One Column
To sort on one column, execute the following steps. 1. Click any cell in the column you want to sort.

2. To sort in ascending order, on the Data tab, click AZ.

Result:

Note: to sort in descending order, click ZA.

Multiple Columns
To sort on multiple columns, execute the following steps. 1. On the Data tab, click Sort.

The Sort dialog box appears. 2. Select Last Name from the 'Sort by' drop-down list.

3. Click on Add Level. 4. Select Sales from the 'Then by' drop-down list.

5. Click OK. Result. Records are sorted by Last Name first and Sales second.

Sort by Color
Excel 2007 makes it possible to sort data by color.

To sort data by color, execute the following steps.

1. Click any single cell inside a data set. 2. On the Data tab, click Sort.

The Sort dialog box appears. 3. Sort by Last Name (or any other column), sort on Cell Color (you can also sort on Font Color and Cell Icon), and select the green color for the first level.

4. Click 'Copy Level' two times and select the other colors. 5. Click OK.

Result.

Reverse List
This article teaches you how to reverse a list in Excel. For example, we want to reverse the list in column A below. 1. Enter the value 1 into cell B1 and the value 2 into cell B2. 2. Select the range B1:B2, click the lower right corner of this range, and drag it down to cell B8.

3. Click any number in the list in column B. 4. On the Data tab, click ZA. Result. Not only the list in column B, but also the list in column A has been reversed.

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Randomize List

This article teaches you how to randomize (shuffle) a list in Excel. For example, we want to randomize the list in column A below. 1. Select cell B1 and insert the RAND() function. 2. Click on the lower right corner of cell B1 and drag it down to cell B8.

3. Click any number in the list in column B. 4. On the Data tab, click ZA. Result. A random list in column A (sorted on the random numbers above).

Note: random numbers change every time a cell on the sheet is calculated. If you don't want this, simply copy the random numbers and paste them as values.

Filter
Filter your Excel data if you only want to display records that meet certain criteria. 1. Click any single cell inside a data set. 2. On the Data tab, click Filter.

Arrows in the column headers appear.

3. Click the arrow next to Country. 4. Click on Select All to clear all the checkboxes, and click the checkbox next to USA.

5. Click OK. Result. Excel only displays the sales in the USA.

6. Click the arrow next to Quarter. 7. Click on Select All to clear all the checkboxes, and click the checkbox next to Qtr 4.

8. Click OK. Result. Excel only displays the sales in the USA in Qtr 4.

9. To remove the filter, on the Data tab, click Clear. To remove the filter and the arrows, click Filter.

Number and Text Filters
Number Filter | Text Filter

This example teaches you how to apply a number filter and a text filter to only display records that meet certain criteria. 1. Click any single cell inside a data set. 2. On the Data tab, click Filter.

Arrows in the column headers appear.

Number Filter
To apply a number filter, execute the following steps. 3. Click the arrow next to Sales. 4. Click Number Filters (this option is available because the Sales column contains numeric data) and select Greater Than from the list.

5. Enter 10,000 and click OK.

Result. Excel only displays the records where Sales is greater than $10,000.

Note: you can also display records equal to a value, less than a value, between two values, the top x records, records that are above average, etc. The sky is the limit!

Text Filter
To apply a text filter, execute the following steps. 3. Click the arrow next to Last Name. 4. Click Text Filters (this option is available because the Last Name column contains text data) and select Equals from the list.

5. Enter ?m* and click OK.

Note: A question mark (?) matches exactly one character. An asterisk (*) matches a series of zero or more characters. Result. Excel only displays the records where the second character of Last Name equals m.

Note: you can also display records that begin with a specific character, end with a specific character, contain or do not contain a specific character, etc. The sky is the limit!

Date Filters
This example teaches you how to apply a date filter to only display records that meet certain criteria. 1. Click any single cell inside a data set. 2. On the Data tab, click Filter.

Arrows in the column headers appear.

3. Click the arrow next to Date. 4. Click on Select All to clear all the checkboxes, click the + sign next to 2012, and click the checkbox next to January.

5. Click OK. Result. Excel only displays the sales in 2012, in January.

6. Click the arrow next to Date. 7. Click on Select All to select all the checkboxes. 8. Click Date Filters (this option is available because the Date column contains dates) and select Last Month from the list.

Result. Excel only displays the sales of last month.

Note: this date filter and many other date filters depend on today's date

Advanced Filter
And Criteria | Or Criteria | Formula as Criteria This example teaches you how to apply an advanced filter to only display records that meet complex criteria. When you use the Advanced Filter, you need to enter the criteria on the worksheet. Create a Criteria range (blue border below for illustration only) above your data set. Use the same column headers. Be sure there's at least one blank row between your Criteria range and data set.

And Criteria
To display the sales in the USA and in Qtr 4, execute the following steps. 1. Enter the criteria shown below on the worksheet.

2. Click any single cell inside the data set. 3. On the Data tab, in the Sort & Filter group, click Advanced.

4. Click in the Criteria range box and select the range A1:D2 (blue). 5. Click OK.

Notice the options to copy your filtered data set to another location and display unique records only (if your data set contains duplicates). Result.

No rocket science so far. We can achieve the same result with the normal filter. We need the Advanced Filter for Or criteria.

Or Criteria
To display the sales in the USA in Qtr 4 or in the UK in Qtr 1, execute the following steps. 6. Enter the criteria shown below on the worksheet. 7. On the Data tab, click Advanced, and adjust the Criteria range to range A1:D3 (blue). 8. Click OK.

Result.

Formula as Criteria
To display the sales in the USA in Qtr 4 greater than $10.000 or in the UK in Qtr 1, execute the following steps. 9. Enter the criteria (+formula) shown below on the worksheet. 10. On the Data tab, click Advanced, and adjust the Criteria range to range A1:E3 (blue). 11. Click OK.

Result.

Note: always place a formula in a new column. Do not use a column label or use a column label that is not in your data set. Create a relative reference to the first cell in the column (B6). The formula must evaluate to TRUE or FALSE.

Data Form
The data form allows you to add, edit and delete records (rows) and display only those records that meet certain criteria. Especially when you have wide rows and you want to avoid repeated scrolling to the right and left, the data form can be useful. 1. Open the downloadable Excel file. 2. Click the Form command on the Quick Access Toolbar.

3. Use the Find Prev and Find Next buttons to easily switch from one record (row) to another.

Note: use the New or Delete button to add or delete records. Once you start editing a record, you can use the Restore button to undo any changes you make.

4. To display only those records that meet certain criteria, click the Criteria button. 5. Enter the criteria and click the Form button.

6. Now, when you use the Find Prev and Find Next buttons, you will only see those records that meet these criteria. In our example, only record 13.

Note: to edit the criteria, click the Criteria button again. To close the data form, click the Close button.

Remove Duplicates

This example teaches you how to remove duplicates in Excel. Go here to only find duplicates. 1. Click any single cell inside the data set. 2. On the Data tab, click Remove Duplicates.

The following dialog box appears. 3. Leave all checkboxes checked and click OK.

Result. Excel removes all identical rows (blue) except for the first identical row found (yellow).

To remove rows with the same values in certain columns, execute the following steps. 4. For example, remove rows with the same Last Name and Country. 5. Check Last Name and Country and click OK.

Result. Excel removes all rows with the same Last Name and Country (blue) except for the first instances found (yellow).

Outlining Data
Outlining data makes your data easier to view. In this example we will total rows of related data and collapse a group of columns. 1. First, sort the data on the Company column.

2. On the data tab, click Subtotal.

3. Select the Company column, the column we use to outline our worksheet. 4. Use the Count function. 5. Check the Company checkbox. 6. Click OK.

Result:

7. To collapse a group of cells, click a minus sign. You can use the numbers to collapse or expand groups by level. For example, click the 2 to only show the subtotals.

Note: click the 1 to only show the Grand Count, click the 3 to show everything. To collapse a group of columns, execute the following steps. 8. For example, select column A and B. 9. On the data tab, click Group.

10. Click the minus sign (it will change to a plus sign). Result:

11. To remove the outline, click any cell inside the data set and on the data tab, click Subtotal, Remove all.

Conditional Formatting
Highlight Cells Rules | Clear Rules | Top/Bottom Rules Conditional formatting in Excel enables you to highlight cells with a certain color, depending on the cell's value.

Highlight Cells Rules
To highlight cells that are greater than a value, execute the following steps. 1. Select the range A1:A10.

2. On the Home tab, click Conditional Formatting, Highlight Cells Rules, Greater Than...

3. Enter the value 80 and select a formatting style.

4. Click OK. Result. Excel highlights the cells that are greater than 80.

5. Change the value of cell A1 to 81. Result. Excel changes the format of cell A1 automatically.

Note: you can also highlight cells that are less than a value, between a low and high value, etc.

Clear Rules
To clear a conditional formatting rule, execute the following steps. 1. Select the range A1:A10.

2. On the Home tab, click Conditional Formatting, Clear Rules, Clear Rules from Selected Cells.

Top/Bottom Rules
To highlight cells that are above the average of the cells, execute the following steps. 1. Select the range A1:A10.

2. On the Home tab, click Conditional Formatting, Top/Bottom Rules, Above Average...

3. Select a formatting style.

4. Click OK. Result. Excel calculates the average (42.5) and formats the cells that are above this average.

Note: you can also highlight the top 10 items, the top 10 %, etc. The sky is the limit!

Manage Rules
To view all conditional formatting rules in a workbook, use the Conditional Formatting Rules Manager. You can also use this screen to create, edit and delete rules. 1. Select cell A1.

2. On the Home tab, click Conditional Formatting, Manage Rules...

The Conditional Formatting Rules Manager appears.

Note: because we selected cell A1, Excel shows the rule applied to the range A1:A10. 3. From the drop-down list, change Current Selection to This Worksheet, to view all conditional formatting rules in this worksheet.

Note: click New Rule, Edit Rule and Delete Rule to create, edit and delete rules.

Data Bars
Data bars in Excel 2010 make it very easy to visualize values in a range of cells. A longer bar represents a higher value. To add data bars, execute the following steps. 1. Select a range. 2. On the Home tab, click Conditional Formatting, Data Bars, and click a subtype.

Result:

Explanation: by default, the cell that holds the minimum value (0 if there are no negative values) has no data bar and the cell that holds the maximum value (95) has a data bar that fills the entire cell. All other cells are filled proportionally. 3. Change the values. Result. Excel updates the data bars automatically. Read on to further customize these data bars.

4. Select the range A1:A10. 5. On the Home tab, click Conditional Formatting, Manage Rules. 6. Click Edit rule. Excel launches the Edit Formatting Rule dialog box. Here you can further customize your data bars (Show Bar Only, Minimum and Maximum, Bar Appearance, Negative Value and Axis, Bar Direction, etc).

Note: to directly launch this dialog box for new rules, at step 2, click More Rules. 7. Select Number from the Minimum drop-down list and enter the value 100. Select Number from the Maximum drop-down list and enter the value 150. 8. Click OK twice.

Result.

Explanation: the cell that holds the value 100 (if any) has no data bar and the cell that holds the value 150 (if any) has a data bar that fills the entire cell. All other cells are filled proportionally.

Color Scales
Color Scales in Excel 2010 make it very easy to visualize values in a range of cells. The shade of the color represents the value in the cell. To add a color scale, execute the following steps. 1. Select a range. 2. On the Home tab, click Conditional Formatting, Color Scales, and click a subtype.

Result:

Explanation: by default, for 3-Color scales, Excel calculates the 50th percentile (also known as median, middle value or midpoint). The cell that holds the minimum value (9) is colored red. The cell that holds the median (36) is colored yellow, and the cell that holds the maximum value (80) is colored green. All other cells are colored proportionally. Read on to further customize this color scale. 3. Select the range A1:A7. 4. On the Home tab, click Conditional Formatting, Manage Rules. 5. Click Edit rule. Excel launches the Edit Formatting Rule dialog box. Here you can further customize your color scale (Format Style, Minimum, Midpoint and Maximum, Color, etc).

Note: to directly launch this dialog box for new rules, at step 2, click More Rules. 6. Select 2-Color Scale from the Format Style drop-down list and select white and blue. 7. Click OK twice.

Result.

Icon Sets
Icon Sets in Excel 2010 make it very easy to visualize values in a range of cells. Each icon represents a range of values. To add an icon set, execute the following steps. 1. Select a range. 2. On the Home tab, click Conditional Formatting, Icon Sets, and click a subtype.

Result:

Explanation: by default, for 3 icons, Excel calculates the 67th percent and 33th percent. 67th percent = min + 0.67 * (max-min) = 2 + 0.67 * (952) = 64.31. 33th percent = min + 0.33 * (max-min) = 2 + 0.33 * (95-2) = 32.69. A green arrow will show for values equal to or greater than 64.31. A yellow arrow will show for values less than 64.31 and equal to or greater than 32.69. A red arrow will show for values less than 32.69. 3. Change the values. Result. Excel updates the icon set automatically. Read on to further customize this icon set.

4. Select the range A1:A10. 5. On the Home tab, click Conditional Formatting, Manage Rules. 6. Click Edit rule. Excel launches the Edit Formatting Rule dialog box. Here you can further customize your icon set (Icon Style, Reverse Icon Order, Show Icon Only, Icon, Value, Type, etc).

Note: to directly launch this dialog box for new rules, at step 2, click More Rules. 7. Select 3 symbols (Uncircled) from the Icon Style drop-down list. Select No Cell Icon from the second Icon drop-down list. Change the Types to Number and change the Values to 100 and 0. Select the greater than symbol (>) next to the value 0. 8. Click OK twice.

Result.

New Rule
If the Highlight Cells Rules, Top/Bottom Rules, Data Bars, Color Scales and Icon Sets are not sufficient, you can create a new rule. For example, highlight the codes below that occur more than once in the range A2:A10and have a score greater than 100.

1. Select the range A2:A10.

2. On the Home tab, click Conditional Formatting, New Rule...

Note: Highlight Cells Rules, Top/Bottom Rules, Data Bars, Color Scales and Icon Sets above are shortcuts. They can also be found under New Rule. 3. Click on 'Use a formula to determine which cells to format'. 4. Enter the formula =AND(COUNTIF($A$2:$A$10,A2)>1,B2>100) 5. Select a formatting style and click OK.

Result. Excel formats cell A5 because code A occurs more than once in the range A2:A10 and the value 150 in cell B5 is greater than 100.

Explanation: COUNTIF($A$2:$A$10,A2) counts the number of codes in the range A2:A10 that are equal to the code in cell A2. If COUNTIF($A$2:$A$10,A2) > 1 and B2 > 100, Excel formats cell A2. Because we selected the range A2:A10 before we clicked on Conditional Formatting, Excel automatically copies the formula to the other cells. Thus, cell A3 contains the formula

=AND(COUNTIF($A$2:$A$10,A3)>1,B3>100), cell A4 =AND(COUNTIF($A$2:$A$10,A4)>1,B4>100), etc. Notice how we created an absolute reference ($A$2:$A$10) to fix this reference.

Find Duplicates
This example teaches you how to find duplicates (or triplicates) in Excel. Go here to remove duplicates.

1. Select the range A1:C10.

2. On the Home tab, click Conditional Formatting, Highlight Cells Rules, Duplicate Values...

3. Select a formatting style and click OK.

Result. Excel highlights the duplicate names.

Note: select Unique from the first drop-down list to highlight the unique names. As you can see, Excel highlights duplicates (Juliet, Delta), triplicates (Sierra), quadruplicates (if we have any), etc. Execute the following steps to highlight triplicates only. 4. First, clear the previous conditional formatting rule. 5. Select the range A1:C10. 6. On the Home tab, click Conditional Formatting, New Rule...

7. Select "Use a formula to determine which cells to format". 8. Enter the formula =COUNTIF($A$1:$C$10,A1)=3 9. Select a formatting style and click OK.

Result. Excel highlights the triplicate names.

Explanation: =COUNTIF($A$1:$C$10,A1) counts the number of names in the range A1:C10 that are equal to the name in cell A1. If COUNTIF($A$1:$C$10,A1) = 3, Excel formats the cell. Because we selected the range A1:C10 before we clicked on Conditional Formatting, Excel automatically copies the formula to the other cells. Thus, cell A2 contains the formula =COUNTIF($A$1:$C$10,A2)=3, cell A3 =COUNTIF($A$1:$C$10,A3)=3, etc. Notice how we created an absolute reference ($A$1:$C$10) to fix this reference. Note: you can use any formula you like. For example, use this formula =COUNTIF($A$1:$C$10,A1)>3 to highlight the names that occur more than 3 times.

Shade Alternate Rows
This example shows you how to use conditional formatting to shade alternate rows. Shading every other row in a range makes it easier to read your data. 1. Select a range.

2. On the Home tab, click Conditional Formatting, New Rule...

3. Click on 'Use a formula to determine which cells to format'. 4. Enter the formula =MOD(ROW(),2) 5. Select a formatting style and click OK.

Result.

Explanation: the MOD function gives the remainder of a division. The ROW() function returns the row number. For example, for the seventh row, MOD(7,2) equals 1. 7 is divided by 2 (3 times) to give a remainder of 1. For the eight row, MOD(8,2) equals 0. 8 is divided by 2 (exactly 4 times) to give a remainder of 0. As a result, all odd rows return 1 (TRUE) and will be shaded.

Compare Two Lists

This example describes how to compare two lists using conditional formatting. For example, you may have two lists of NFL teams.

To highlight the teams in the first list that are not in the second list, execute the following steps. 1. First, select the range A1:A18 and name it firstList, select the range B1:B20 and name it secondList. 2. Next, select the range A1:A18. 3. On the Home tab, click Conditional Formatting, New Rule...

4. Select "Use a formula to determine which cells to format". 5. Enter the formula =COUNTIF(secondList,A1)=0 6. Select a formatting style and click OK.

Result. Miami Dolphins and Tennessee Titans are not in the second list.

Explanation: =COUNTIF(secondList,A1) counts the number of teams in secondList that are equal to the team in cell A1. If COUNTIF(secondList,A1) = 0, the team in cell A1 is not in the second list. As a result, Excel fills the cell with a blue background color. Because we selected the range A1:A18 before we clicked on Conditional Formatting, Excel automatically copies the formula to the other cells. Thus, cell A2 contains the formula =COUNTIF(secondList,A2)=0, cell A3 =COUNTIF(secondList,A3)=0, etc. 7. To highlight the teams in the second list that are not in the first list, select the range B1:B20, create a new rule using the formula =COUNTIF(firstList,B1)=0, and set the format to orange fill. Result. Denver Broncos, Arizona Cardinals, Minnesota Vikings and Pittsburgh Steelers are not in the first list.

Conflicting Rules
Sometimes multiple conditional formatting rules in Excel conflict. A higher rule always wins. This example illustrates two different results. 1. The value 95 is higher than 80 but is also the highest value (Top 1). The formats (yellow fill vs green fill and yellow te xt color vs green text color) conflict. A higher rule always wins. As a result, the value 95 is colored yellow.

Result:

2. Move the second rule up. The value 95 is the highest value (Top 1) but is also higher than 80. The formats (green fill vs yellow fill and green text color vs yellow text color) conflict. A higher rule always wins. As a result, the value 95 is colored green.

Result:

Note: only use the Stop If True checkboxes for backwards compatibility with earlier versions of Microsoft Excel.

Checklist
This example teaches you how to create a checklist in Excel. First, turn on the Developer tab. Next, you can create a checklist.

To create this checklist, execute the following steps. 1. On the Developer tab, click Insert and then click Check Box in the Form Controls section.

2. Draw a checkbox in cell B2.

3. To remove "Check Box 1", right click the checkbox, click the text and delete it. 4. Select cell B2. 5. Click on the lower right corner of cell B2 and drag it down to cell B11.

6. Right click the first checkbox and click Format Control.

7. Link the checkbox to the cell next to it (cell C2).

8. Repeat step 7 for the other checkboxes. 9. The count the number of items packed, insert a COUNTIF function into cell B14.

10. Hide column C. 11. Insert an IF function into cell B16. Result:

Note: we created a conditional formatting rule to change the background color of cell B16 depending on the cell's value.

Pivot Tables
Insert a Pivot Table | Drag fields | Sort | Filter | Change Summary Calculation | Two-dimensional Pivot Table Pivot tables are one of Excel's most powerful features. A pivot table allows you to extract the significance from a large, detailed data set. Our data set consists of 214 rows and 6 fields. Order ID, Product, Category, Amount, Date and Country.

Insert a Pivot Table
To insert a pivot table, execute the following steps. 1. Click any single cell inside the data set. 2. On the Insert tab, click PivotTable.

The following dialog box appears. Excel automatically selects the data for you. The default location for a new pivot table is New Worksheet. 3. Click OK.

Drag fields
The PivotTable field list appears. To get the total amount exported of each product, drag the following fields to the different areas. 1. Product Field to the Row Labels area. 2. Amount Field to the Values area. 3. Country Field to the Report Filter area.

Below you can find the pivot table. Bananas are our main export product. That's how easy pivot tables can be!

Sort
To get Banana at the top of the list, sort the pivot table. 1. Click any cell inside the Total column. 2. The PivotTable Tools contextual tab activates. On the Options tab, click the Sort Largest to Smallest button (ZA).

Result.

Filter
Because we added the Country field to the Report Filter area, we can filter this pivot table by Country. For example, which products do we export the most to France? 1. Click the filter drop-down and select France. Result. Apples are our main export product to France.

Note: you can use the standard filter (triangle next to Product) to only show the totals of specific products.

Change Summary Calculation
By default, Excel summarizes your data by either summing or counting the items. To change the type of calculation that you want to use, execute the following steps.

1. Click any cell inside the Total column. 2. Right click and click on Value Field Settings...

3. Choose the type of calculation you want to use. For example, click Count.

4. Click OK. Result. 16 out of the 28 orders to France were 'Apple' orders.

Two-dimensional Pivot Table
If you drag a field to the Row Labels area and Column Labels area, you can create a two-dimensional pivot table. For example, to get the total amount exported to each country, of each product, drag the following fields to the different areas. 1. Country Field to the Row Labels area. 2. Product Field to the Column Labels area. 3. Amount Field to the Values area. 4. Category Field to the Report Filter area.

Below you can find the two-dimensional pivot table.

To easily compare these numbers, create a pivot chart and apply a filter. Maybe this is one step too far for you at this stage, but it shows you one of the many other powerful pivot table features Excel has to offer.

Group Pivot Table Items
Group Products | Group Dates This example teaches you how to group pivot table items. Learn how to group products and how to group dates by months. Below you can find a pivot table. Go back to Pivot Tables to learn how to create this pivot table.

Group Products
The Product field contains 7 items. Apple, Banana, Beans, Broccoli, Carrots, Mango and Orange. To create two groups, execute the following steps.

1. In the pivot table, select Apple and Banana. 2. Right click and click on Group.

3. In the pivot table, select Beans, Broccoli, Carrots, Mango and Orange. 4. Right click and click on Group.

Result:

Note: to change the name of a group (Group1 or Group2), select the name, and edit the name in the formula bar. To change the name of the newly created field (Product2), double click it. To ungroup, select the group, right click and click on Ungroup. 5. To collapse the groups, click the minus signs.

Conclusion: Apple and Banana (Group1) have a higher total than all the other products (Group2) together.

Group Dates
The Date field contains many items. 1/6/2012, 1/7/2012, 1/8/2012, 1/10/2012, 1/11/2012, etc. To group these dates by months, execute the following steps. 1. Click any cell inside the Date column. 2. Right click and click on Group.

3. Select Months and click OK.

Note: also see the option to group by seconds, minutes, hours, etc. Result:

Conclusion: May is the best month.

Multi-level Pivot Table

Multiple Row Fields

| Multiple Value Fields

| Multiple Report Filter Fields

It's perfectly ok to drag more than one field to an area in a pivot table. We will look at an example of multiple row fields, multiple value fields and multiple report filter fields. Remember, our data set consists of 214 rows and 6 fields. Order ID, Product, Category, Amount, Date and Country.

Multiple Row Fields
First, insert a pivot table. Next, drag the following fields to the different areas. 1. Category Field and Country Field to the Row Labels area. 2. Amount Field to the Values area.

Below you can find the multi-level pivot table.

Multiple Value Fields
First, insert a pivot table. Next, drag the following fields to the different areas. 1. Country Field to the Row Labels area. 2. Amount Field to the Values area (2x).

Note: if you drag the Amount field to the Values area for the second time, Excel also populates the Column Labels area. Pivot table:

3. Next, click any cell inside the Sum of Amount2 column. 4. Right click and click on Value Field Settings...

5. Enter Percentage for Custom Name. 6. On the Show Values As tab, select % of Grand Total.

7. Click OK.

Result:

Multiple Report Filter Fields
First, insert a pivot table. Next, drag the following fields to the different areas. 1. Order ID to the Row Labels area. 2. Amount Field to the Values area. 3. Country Field and Product Field to the Report Filter area.

4. Next, select United Kingdom from the first filter drop-down and Broccoli from the second filter drop-down. The pivot table shows all the 'Broccoli' orders to the United Kingdom.

Frequency Distribution

Did you know that you can use pivot tables to easily create a frequency distribution in Excel? You can also use the Analysis Toolpak to create a histogram. Remember, our data set consists of 214 rows and 6 fields. Order ID, Product, Category, Amount, Date and Country.

First, insert a pivot table. Next, drag the following fields to the different areas. 1. Amount Field to the Row Labels area. 2. Amount Field (or any other field) to the Values area.

3. Next, click any cell inside the Amount column.

4. Right click and click on Group.

5. Enter 0 for Starting at, 10000 for Ending at, and 1000 for By. 6. Click OK.

Result:

To easily compare these numbers, create a pivot chart. 7. Click any cell inside the pivot table. 8. On the Insert tab, in the Charts group, click Column and select one of the subtypes. For example, Clustered Column. Result:

Pivot Chart
Insert Pivot Chart | Filter Pivot Chart | Change Pivot Chart Type A pivot chart is the visual representation of a pivot table in Excel. Pivot charts and pivot tables are connected with each other. Below you can find a two-dimensional pivot table. Go back to Pivot Tables to learn how to create this pivot table.

Insert Pivot Chart
To insert a pivot chart, simply insert a chart. 1. Click any cell inside the pivot table. 2. On the Insert tab, click Column and select one of the subtypes. For example, Clustered Column.

Below you can find the pivot chart. This pivot chart will amaze and impress your boss.

Note: any changes you make to the pivot chart are immediately reflected in the pivot table and vice versa.

Filter Pivot Chart
To filter this pivot chart, execute the following steps. 1a. Use the standard filters (triangles next to Product and Country). For example, use the Country filter to only show the total amount of each product exported to the United States.

1b. Because we added the Category field to the Report Filter area, we can filter this pivot chart (and pivot table) by Category. For example, use the Category filter to only show the vegetables exported to each country.

Change Pivot Chart Type
You can change to a different type of pivot chart at any time. 1. Select the chart. 2. The PivotChart tools contextual tab activates. On the Design tab, click Change Chart Type.

3. Choose Pie.

4. Click OK.

Note: pie charts always use one data series (in this case, Apple). To get a pivot chart of a country, swap the data over the axis. Select the chart. The PivotChart tools contextual tab activates. On the Design tab, click Switch Row/Column.

Slicers
Excel 2010 makes it possible to insert slicers to quickly and easily filter pivot tables. However, using the report filter gives the exact same result. Below you can find a two-dimensional pivot table. Go back to Pivot Tables to learn how to create this pivot table.

To insert a slicer, execute the following steps. 1. Click any cell inside the pivot table. The PivotTable Tools contextual tab activates. 2. On the Options tab, insert a slicer.

3. Check Category and click OK.

4. For example, Click Fruit to only show the fruit exported to each country.

Note: notice how the report filter changed to Fruit. Hold down CTRL to include fruit and vegetables.

Update Pivot Table
Refresh | Change Data Source Any changes you make to the data set are not automatically picked up by the pivot table. Refresh the pivot tableor change the data source to update the pivot table with the applied changes.

Refresh
If you change any of the text or numbers in your data set, you need to refresh the pivot table. 1. Click any cell inside the pivot table. 2. Right click and click on Refresh.

Change Data Source
If you change the size of your data set by adding or deleting rows/columns, you need to update the source data for the pivot table. 1. Click any cell inside the pivot table. 2. The PivotTable Tools contextual tab activates. On the Options tab, click Change Data Source.

Tip: change your data set to a table before you insert a pivot table. This way your data source will be updated automatically when you add or delete rows/columns. This can save time. You still have to refresh though.

Calculated Field/Item
Calculated Field | Calculated Item This example teaches you how to insert a calculated field or calculated item in a pivot table. Below you can find a pivot table. Go back to Pivot Tables to learn how to create this pivot table.

Calculated Field
A calculated field uses the values from another field. To insert a calculated field, execute the following steps. 1. Click any cell inside the pivot table. 2. The PivotTable Tools contextual tab activates. On the Options tab, click Calculated Field.

3. Enter Tax for Name. 4. Type the formula =IF(Amount>100000, 3%*Amount, 0) 5. Click Add.

Note: use the Insert Field button to quickly insert fields when you type a formula. To delete a calculated field, select the field and click Delete (under Add). 6. Click OK. 7. Drag the Tax field to the Values area. Result:

Calculated Item
A calculated item uses the values from other items. To insert a calculated item, execute the following steps. 1. Click any Country in the pivot table. 2. The PivotTable Tools contextual tab activates. On the Options tab, click Calculated Item.

3. Enter Oceania for Name. 4. Type the formula =3%*(Australia+'New Zealand') 5. Click Add.

Note: use the Insert Item button to quickly insert items when you type a formula. To delete a calculated item, select the item and click Delete (under Add). 6. Repeat steps 3 to 5 for North America (Canada and United States) and Europe (France, Germany and United Kingdom) with a 4% and 5% tax rate respectively. 7. Click OK. Result:

Note: we created two groups (Sales and Taxes).

Tables
Insert a Table | Sort a Table | Filter a Table | Total Row Tables allow you to analyze your data in Excel quickly and easily.. Learn how to insert, sort and filter a table, and how to display a total row at the end of a table.

Insert a Table
To insert a table, execute the following steps. 1. Click any single cell inside the data set.

2. On the Insert tab, click Table.

3. Excel automatically selects the data for you. Check 'My table has headers' and click on OK.

Result. Excel creates a nicely formatted table for you. This may still seem like a normal data range to you but many powerful features are now just a click of a button away.

Note: the Table Tools contextual tab (with the underlying Design tab selected) is the starting point for working with tables. If at any time you lose this tab, simply click any cell within the table and it will activate again. Choose a table style you like. Hover over a table style and Excel gives you a life preview.

Sort a Table
To sort by Last Name first and Sales second, first sort by Sales, next sort by Last Name (the exact opposite). 1. Click the arrow next to Sales and click Sort Smallest to Largest. 2. Click the arrow next to Last Name and click Sort A to Z. Result.

Filter a Table
To filter a table, execute the following steps. 1. Click the arrow next to Country and only check USA. Result.

Total Row
To display a total row at the end of the table, execute the following steps. 1. On the Design tab, in the Table Style Options group, check Total Row.

2. Click any cell in the last row to calculate the Total (Average, Count, Max, Min, Sum etc.) of a column. For example, calculate the sum of the Sales column.

Note: in the formula bar see how Excel uses the SUBTOTAL function to calculate the sum. 109 is the argument for Sum if you use the SUBTOTAL function. Excel uses this function (and not the standard SUM function) to correctly calculate table totals of filtered tables.

Structured References
When working with tables in Excel, you can use structured references to make your formulas easier to understand. For example, we have the following table.

1. Select cell E1, type Bonus, and press Enter. Excel automatically formats the column for you.

2. Select cell E2 and type =0.02*[ 3. A list of structured references (the columns) appears. Select Sales from the list.

4. Close with a square bracket and press Enter.

Result. Excel automatically copies the formula down the column for you.

Note: click AutoCorrect Options and click Undo Calculated Column to only insert the formula into cell E2. To refer to this table in a formula, execute the following steps. 5. First, we need to know the name of the table. On the Design tab, in the Properties group, we can see that this table is called Table1.

6. Select cell G2 and enter the formula shown below.

Explanation: this formula calculates the sum of the Sales column. Enter =SUM(Table1[ and Excel will give you a list of structured references you can use. This formula updates automatically when you add or delete records.

Table Styles
Quickly format a range of cells by choosing a table style. You can also create your own table style. Quickly format a cell by choosing a cell style. 1. Click any single cell inside the data set.

2. On the Home tab, in the Styles group, click Format as Table, and choose a table style.

Note: click New Table Style to create your own table style or right click a table style and click Duplicate to create a new table style that is similar to an existing one. Modifying a custom table style affects all tables in a workbook that use that table style. This can save a lot of time. 3. Excel automatically selects the data for you. Check 'My table has headers' and click on OK.

Result. This is another way to insert a table.

To convert this table back to a normal range of cells (and keep the formatting), execute the following steps. 4. On the Design tab, in the Tools group, click Convert to Range.

Result. A nicely formatted range of cells.

Note: to remove the table style, select the range of cells, on the Home tab, in the Styles group, click Norma

What-If Analysis
Create Different Scenarios | Scenario Summary | Goal Seek What-If Analysis in Excel allows you to try out different values (scenarios) for formulas. The following example helps you master what-if analysis quickly and easily. Assume you own a book store and have 100 books in storage. You sell a certain % for the highest price of $50 and a certain % for the lower price of $20.

If you sell 60% for the highest price, cell D10 calculates a total profit of 60 * $50 + 40 * $20 = $3800.

Create Different Scenarios
But what if you sell 70% for the highest price? And what if you sell 80% for the highest price? Or 90%, or even 100%? Each different percentage is a different scenario. You can use the Scenario Manager to create these scenarios. Note: You can simply type in a different percentage into cell C4 to see the corresponding result of a scenario in cell D10. However, what-if analysis enables you to easily compare the results of different scenarios. Read on. 1. On the Data tab, click What-If Analysis and select Scenario Manager from the list.

The Scenario Manager dialog box appears. 2. Add a scenario by clicking on Add.

3. Type a name (60% highest), select cell C4 (% sold for the highest price) for the Changing cells and click on OK.

4. Enter the corresponding value 0.6 and click on OK again.

5. Next, add 4 other scenarios (70%, 80%, 90% and 100%).

Finally, your Scenario Manager should be consistent with the picture below:

Note: to see the result of a scenario, select the scenario and click on the Show button. Excel will change the value of cell C4 accordingly for you to see the corresponding result on the sheet.

Scenario Summary
To easily compare the results of these scenarios, execute the following steps. 1. Click the Summary button in the Scenario Manager. 2. Next, select cell D10 (total profit) for the result cell and click on OK.

Result:

Conclusion: if you sell 70% for the highest price, you obtain a total profit of $4100, if you sell 80% for the highest price, you obtain a total profit of $4400, etc. That's how easy what-if analysis in Excel can be.

Goal Seek
What if you want to know how many books you need to sell for the highest price, to obtain a total profit of exactly $4700? You can use Excel's Goal Seek feature to find the answer. 1. On the Data tab, click What-If Analysis, Goal Seek.

The Goal Seek dialog box appears. 2. Select cell D10. 3. Click in the 'To value' box and type 4700. 4. Click in the 'By changing cell' box and select cell C4. 5. Click OK.

Result. You need to sell 90% of the books for the highest price to obtain a total profit of exactly $4700.

Data Tables
One Variable Data Table | Two Variable Data Table Instead of creating different scenarios you can create a data table to quickly try out different values for formulas. You can create a one variable data table or a two variable data table. Assume you own a book store and have 100 books in storage. You sell a certain % for the highest price of $50 and a certain % for the lower price of $20. If you sell 60% for the highest price, cell D10 below calculates a total profit of 60 * $50 + 40 * $20 = $3800.

One Variable Data Table
To create a one variable data table, execute the following steps. 1. Select cell B12 and type =D10 (refer to the total profit cell). 2. Type the different percentages in column A. 3. Select the range A12:B17. We are going to calculate the total profit if you sell 60% for the highest price, 70% for the highest price, etc.

4. On the Data tab, click What-If Analysis and select Data Table from the list.

5. Click in the 'Column input cell' box (the percentages are in a column) and select cell C4. We select cell C4 because the percentages refer to cell C4 (% sold for the highest price). Together with the formula in cell B12, Excel now knows that it should replace cell C4 with 60% to calculate the total profit, replace cell C4 with 70% to calculate the total profit, etc.

Note: this is a one variable data table so we leave the Row input cell blank.

6. Click OK. Result.

Conclusion: if you sell 60% for the highest price, you obtain a total profit of $3800, if you sell 70% for the highest price, you obtain a total profit of $4100, etc. Note: the formula bar indicates that the cells contain an array formula. Therefore, you cannot delete a single result. To delete the results, select the range B13:B17 and press Delete.

Two Variable Data Table
To create a two variable data table, execute the following steps. 1. Select cell A12 and type =D10 (refer to the total profit cell). 2. Type the different unit profits (highest price) in row 12. 3. Type the different percentages in column A. 4. Select the range A12:D17. We are going to calculate the total profit for the different combinations of 'unit profit (highest price)' and '% sold for the highest price'.

5. On the Data tab, click What-If Analysis and select Data Table from the list.

6. Click in the 'Row input cell' box (the unit profits are in a row) and select cell D7. 7. Click in the 'Column input cell' box (the percentages are in a column) and select cell C4. We select cell D7 because the unit profits refer to cell D7. We select cell C4 because the percentages refer to cell C4. Together with the formula in cell A12, Excel now knows that it should replace cell D7 with $50 and cell C4 with 60% to calculate the total profit, replace cell D7 with $50 and cell C4 with 70% to calculate the total profit, etc.

8. Click OK. Result.

Conclusion: if you sell 60% for the highest price, at a unit profit of $50, you obtain a total profit of $3800, if you sell 80% for the highest price, at a unit profit of $60, you obtain a total profit of $5200, etc. Note: the formula bar indicates that the cells contain an array formula. Therefore, you cannot delete a single result. To delete the results, select the range B13:D17 and press Delete.

Quadratic Equation
A quadratic equation is of the form ax + bx + c = 0 where a ≠ 0. A quadratic equation can be solved by using the quadratic formula. You can also use Excel's Goal Seek feature to solve a quadratic equation. 1. For example, we have the formula y = 3x - 12x + 9.5. It's easy to calculate y for any given x. For x = 1, y = 0.5
2 2

2. For x = 2, y = -2.5

3. But what if we want to know x for any given y? For example, y = 24.5. We need to solve 3x - 12x + 9.5 = 24.5. We can solve the quadratic equation 3x - 12x + 9.5 - 24.5 = 0 by using the quadratic formula. 3x a
2 2 2

2

12x =
2

-15 b = -12, c

= =

0 -15

3,

D = b - 4ac = (-12) - 4 * 3 * -15 = 144 + 180 = 324

x =

-b + √D or 2a 12 +

x =

-b - √D 2a

x =

√324 6

x 12 - √324 or = 6 x or = x 12 - 18 6

x = x

12 + 18 6

5 =
Goal Seek.

or =

-1

4. You can use Excel's Goal Seek feature to obtain the exact same result. On the Data tab, in the Data Tools group, click What-If Analysis,

The Goal Seek dialog box appears. 5. Select cell B2. 6. Click in the 'To value' box and type 24.5 7. Click in the 'By changing cell' box and select cell A2. 8. Click OK.

Result.

Note: Excel returns the solution x = 5. Excel finds the other solution if you start with a x-value closer to x = -1. For example, enter the value 0 into cell A2 and repeat steps 4 to 8. To find the roots, set y = 0 and solve the quadratic equation 3x - 12x + 9.5 = 0. In this case, set 'To value' to 0.
2