Basic formulas
Basic formulas | Advanced formulas

The formulas presented in this category are easier to type and not complicated to understand, the sidebar (or click the hamburger icon if you are on mobile) displays all articles in this category.
- How do I enter a formula?
- How do I create cell references in a formula?
- How do type a formula and not let Excel evaluate/calculate?
- Can I combine functions in a formula?
- Can a formula return multiple values?
- How do I add two numbers?
- How do I divide two numbers?
- How do I subtract a numbers?
- How can I multiply two numbers?
- How can I sum numbers in a cell range?
- How can I multiply numbers in a cell range?
- How do I calculate the power of a number?
- How do I round a number up?
- How do I round a number down?
- What is an Excel date?
- How can I get the current date?
- Can I add days to a date?
- Can I subtract days to a date?
- How can I get the current time?
- How can I add hours to a time value?
- Can a formula count values?
- Can a formula count values based on a condition?
- Can a formula count empty cells?
- Can a formula count cells containing only numbers?
- Can a formula count text values?
- Can a formula count boolean values?
- Can a I use parentheses in a formula?
- What is a logical expression?
- What is a comparison operator?
- How do I calculate sine?
- How do I calculate cosine?
- How do I calculate tangent?
- How do I calculate secant?
- How do I calculate cosecant?
- How do I calculate cotangent?
- How do I remove the sign before a number?
How do I enter a formula?
- Double-click with left mouse button on the cell you want to use.
An input prompt appears in the cell. - Begin typing an equal sign, it looks like this: =
This tells Excel to interpret the remaining text you type a s a formula. - I am going to type TODAY(), it will return the current date.
Press Enter when you have finished entering the formula.
Back to top
How do I create cell references in a formula?

You can type the cell references or you can use your mouse to click on a cell, here is how:
- Select a cell.
- Type the equal sign =
- Use your mouse and click on a cell you want to reference and the cell reference will appear automatically in the formula.
Back to top
How do I type a formula and not let Excel evaluate/calculate the formula?

Begin your formula with a ' character (apostrophe) and then type the equal sign and the formula. Excel will interpret it as a text value and the ' character (apostrophe) will not be shown in the cell. It will, however, be displayed in the formula bar.
The image above demonstrates a formula that begins with a apostrophe. You can also use the FORMULATEXT function to show the contents of a cell.

Back to top
Can I combine functions in a formula?

Yes, and I highly recommend it. This makes Excel so powerful and interesting to use, you can customize the formulas to your needs.
The image above demonstrates two functions TODAY function and YEAR function. The TODAY function returns an Excel date that Excel formats as a date. The YEAR function then extracts the year from the Excel date.
Back to top
Can a formula return multiple values?
Yes, in fact there are a few functions that actually return multiple values by design. They return values distributed over a number of cells and they require you to enter them as an array formula in order to show all values.
You can also create an array formula that uses regular functions, however, it returns multiple values. This may seem confusing but most regular functions can be used in array formulas.
The new TEXTJOIN function can also concatenate multiple values and return them to single cell.
Back to top
How do I add two numbers?

Simply type =5+9 in a cell and then press Enter. Excel returns the calculated value and the Formula bar shows the arithmetic operation.

You can also use cell references pointing to different cells, the image above demonstrates two numbers 9 and 5 in cell B2 and B3 respectively. The formula in cell D2 adds the numbers in cell B2 and B3 based on cell references.
Back to top
How do I divide two numbers?

Use the forward slash character / to divide numbers.

Replace the numbers with cell references to cells containing the numbers you want to divide.
Back to top
How do I subtract a numbers?

Use the forward slash character / to divide numbers.

Replace the numbers with cell references to cells containing the numbers you want to divide.
Back to top
How can I multiply two numbers?

Use the asterisk character * to multiply numbers.

Replace the numbers with cell references to cells containing the numbers you want to multiply.
Back to top
How can I sum numbers in a cell range using a formula?

- Select the cell where you want the formula.
- Type the equal sign =
- Type SUM(
- Use your mouse and click and hold on a cell containing the first number you want to add.
- Drag with mouse to include the remaining cells.
- Release mouse button.
- Type an ending parentheses )
- Press Enter.
How can I sum numbers in a cell range based on a condition?
Use the SUMIFS function.
Back to top
How can I multiply numbers in a cell range?
Use the PRODUCT function.
Back to top
How do I calculate the power of a number (number is raised to a power) ?
Use the POWER function or simply use this character ^. Example =10^2 returns 100.
Back to top
How do I round a number up?
I recommend that you try the ROUNDUP function.
Back to top
How do I round a number down?
I recommend that you try the ROUNDDOWN function.
Back to top
What is an Excel date?

It is actually an integer from 1 and up. 1 is 1/1/1900 and 1/1/2000 is 36526 so 1/1/2000 is 36525 days from 1/1/1900.
Try it yourself, enter a date in a cell. Select the cell containing the date and then press CTRL + 1 to format the cell.

Change the formatting to "General". Click OK.

The cell now shows the number representing the date.
Back to top
How can I get the current date?
Use the TODAY() function.
Back to top
Can I add days to a date?

Yes, since dates are integers you simply add a number representing days to the date. The image above displays 1/1/1900 in cell B3, cell C3 contains 7.
The formula in cell D3 is =B3+C3, it adds 7 to 1/1/1900 and returns 1/8/1900.
Back to top
Can I subtract days to a date?

Yes, simply use the minus sign in your formula, for example: =B3-C3
The image demonstrates the same formula as the previous example above, however it uses negative numbers as dates instead.
Back to top
How can I get the current time?
The NOW function returns the current date and time, however the TEXT function can format the value to show only the time part. Use the following formula: =TEXT(NOW(),"HH:ss")
Back to top
How can I add hours to a time value?

1 day or 24 hours is 1 in Excel, 1 hour is 1/24 so to add 1 hour simply add 1/24 to the Excel date and time value.
Back to top
Can a formula count values?

Yes, the COUNTA function counts non-empty values in a given cell range.
Back to top
Can a formula count values based on a condition?
Yes, use the COUNTIF function.
Back to top
Can a formula count empty cells?
Yes, use the COUNTBLANK function.
Back to top
Can a formula count cells containing only numbers?
Yes, use the COUNT function.
Back to top
Can a formula count text values?

Yes, the image above shows a formula in cell D3 that counts text values in cell range B3:B11.
=SUMPRODUCT(ISTEXT(B3:B11)*1)
The ISTEXT function returns TRUE if a cell contains a text value and FALSE if not. The SUMPRODUCT function simply adds the values and returns the total.
Back to top
Can a formula count boolean values?

Yes, the image above shows a formula in cell D3 that counts logical values in cell range B3:B11.
=SUMPRODUCT(ISLOGICAL(B3:B11)*1)
The ISLOGICAL function returns TRUE if a cell contains a boolean value and FALSE if not. The SUMPRODUCT function simply adds the values and returns the total.
Back to top
Can a I use parentheses in a formula?

Yes, use it to change the order of calculation. The picture above shows two formulas, the parentheses determines the order of calculation.
The formula in cell C3 calculates 5+4 first and then multiplies with 9. 9*9 = 81
The formula in cell C4 calculates the multiplication first and then the addition. 4*9 equals 36 and then adds 5 equals 41.
Back to top
What is a logical expression?
It is an expression that returns either TRUE or FALSE or their equivalents 1 or 0 (zero). It uses the comparison operators in order to determine the outcome.
Example formula: =B3>5
The formula above returns TRUE if the value in cell B3 is larger than 5 and FALSE if it is equal to or smaller than 5.
A logical expression is used in IF functions, Conditional Formatting and in SUMPRODUCT formulas to name a few.
Back to top
What is a comparison operator?
It is a character that compares two or more values and is used in logical expressions. They are:
- <
- >
- =
With these three characters you can create logical operators:
- < - Less than
- > - Larger than
- = - Equal to
- <= - Less than or equal to
- >= - Larger than or equal to
- <> - Not equal to
Back to top
How do I calculate sine?
Use the SIN function.
Back to top
How do I calculate cosine?
Use the COS function.
Back to top
How do I calculate tangent?
Use the TAN function.
Back to top
How do I calculate secant?
Use the SEC function.
Back to top
How do I calculate cosecant?
Use the CSC function.
Back to top
How do I calculate cotangent?
Use the COT function.
Back to top
How do I remove the sign before a number?
The ABS function allows you to delete the minus sign.
Latest articles in Basic formulas category
Extract values between two given delimiting strings
The image above demonstrates a rather small formula in cell D3 that extracts values in cell B3 based on two […]
How to do tiered calculations in one formula
The image above demonstrates a formula that calculates tiered values based on a tier table and returns a total. This […]
I will in this article demonstrate different ways to sum values, the first method is so easy and fast it's […]
How to ignore error values using the SMALL function
The image above shows you a formula in cell D3 that tries to get the smallest number from cell range […]
The image above shows numbers in column B, some of these numbers are duplicates. The formula in D12 adds unique […]
INDEX and MATCH are more versatile than the VLOOKUP function in terms of lookups, however, it only gets the first […]
The image above shows the COUNTBLANK function counting empty cells in cell range B3:B14. Note that the COUNTBLANK function ignores […]
Count complete hours between two times
The formula in cell D5 calculates the number of complete hours between the time entries in cell B5 and C5. […]
Calculate the number of weeks between given dates
This article demonstrates Excel formulas that calculate complete weeks between two given dates and weeks and days between two given […]
How to calculate the number of months between dates
The image above shows the DATEDIF function calculating the number of complete months between two dates. Column B and column C […]
How to calculate the number of years between dates
The image above demonstrates the DATEDIF function calculating the number of complete years between two dates. Column B and column C […]
How to count workdays between two dates
Excel contains a great function that easily counts the number of workdays between two dates, it even allows you to […]
How to replace part of formula in all cells
This article explains how to substitute part of a formula across all cells in a worksheet. It is easier than […]
The easiest way to check if a cell has a value is, in my opinion, to use the equal sign […]
Count a given pattern in a cell value
The formula in cell B6 counts how many times the string (D3) is found in a cell value (B3) even […]
Extract n-th word in cell value
The formula displayed above in cell range D3:D9 extracts a word based on its position in a cell value. For […]
The picture above shows different values in column B and a formula in column C that tries to identifies the […]
Table of Contents Count cells with text Count cells with text excluding cells containing a space character Count text values […]
The formula in cell B17 counts rows in cell range B3:D17 when at least one cell per row contains data. […]
Count cells equal to any value in a list
The formula in cell F9 counts the number of cells in column BÂ (Values1) that are equal to any of the […]
SMALL function with multiple cell ranges
Today I learned how to sort numbers from multiple cell ranges thanks to Sam Miller. It is surprisingly simple and easy. […]
Column B contains document names, many of them are duplicates. The adjacent column C has the revision of the documents […]
How to extract numbers from a cell value
The following array formula, demonstrated in cell C3, extracts all numbers from a cell value: =TEXTJOIN(, 1, TEXT(MID(B3, ROW($A$1:INDEX($A$1:$A$1000, LEN(B3))), […]
How to remove unwanted characters in a cell
Cell B3 contains a few odd characters and the formula in C3 shows the ANSI equivalent of each character in […]
Count specific WEEKDAYS between two dates
If you want to count specific weekdays like for example Mondays and Wednesdays you need a more complicated array formula. […]
Table of Contents Extract the last word Extract the last letter Extract the last number Get Excel *.xlsx file 1. […]
How to remove numbers from a cell value
This article demonstrates an array formula that extracts all characters except numbers from a cell, cell C3 contains the formula […]
The formula in cell C3 grabs the first word in B3 using a blank as the delimiting character. =LEFT(B3,SEARCH(" ",B3)-1) […]
The LEFT function allows you to extract a string from a cell with a specific number of characters, however, if […]
INDEX and MATCH – multiple criteria and multiple results
This article demonstrates how to use INDEX and MATCH functions to match multiple conditions and return multiple results. The Excel […]
Count cells containing text from list
The array formula in cell F3 counts cells in column B that contains at least one of the values in […]
If cell contains multiple values
This article demonstrates formulas that perform a partial match for a given cell using multiple strings specified in cells F2 […]
The DATEDIF function in cell E3 allows you to calculate days between two dates.
This article demonstrates how to extract multiple numbers based on a condition and return a sorted list from small to […]
How to ignore zeros using the SMALL function
This article shows how to create a formula that sorts numbers from small to large excluding zeros. I will also […]
SMALL function – multiple conditions
This article demonstrates how to sort numbers from small to large using a condition or criteria, I will show how […]
This article demonstrates a formula that sorts text values based on character length, the Excel 365 dynamic array formula is […]
Table of Contents How to AVERAGE time How to enter an array formula Explaining formula How to AVERAGE time hh […]
SMALL function ignore duplicates
This article demonstrates ways to sort numbers from smallest to largest ignoring duplicate numbers. Table of Contents SMALL function with […]
The picture above demonstrates a formula in cell F3 that allows you to look up a value in column B […]
This article explains why your formula is not working properly, there are usually four different things that can go wrong. […]
INDEX MATCH – multiple results
This article demonstrates how to use INDEX and MATCH functions to lookup and return multiple results. The lookup value is […]
Match two columns and return another value on the same row
This article demonstrates formulas that match two conditions in a column each and return another value on the same row […]
If cell equals value from list
This article demonstrates formulas that check if a cell value is equal to any value in a given list. Table […]
To extract groups from cell range B3:B10 I use the following regular formula in cell B13.
If cell contains text from list
This article demonstrates several ways to check if a cell contains any value based on a list. The first example […]
INDEX MATCH with multiple criteria
This article demonstrates formulas that let you perform lookups using two or more conditions. The image above shows two conditions […]
The formula in cell C15 uses two dates two to filter and then sum values in column C, the SUMIFS […]
How to use the COUNTIF function to count not blank cells
The COUNTIF function is very capable of counting non-empty values, I will show you how in this article. Excel can […]
This article demonstrates different formulas based on if a cell contains a given text. Formula in cell C3: =B3=$E$3 The […]
Use IF + COUNTIF to evaluate multiple conditions
The image above demonstrates a formula that matches a value to multiple conditions, if the condition is met the formula […]
IF function with AND function – multiple conditions
The AND function allows you to have multiple conditions in an IF function, you can have up to 254 arguments. […]
How to simplify nested IF functions
Nested IF statements in a formula are multiple combined IF functions so more conditions and outcomes become possible. They all are […]
This article demonstrates a formula that calculates a running total. A running total is a sum that adds new numbers […]
Find empty cells and sum cells above
This article demonstrates how to find empty cells and populate them automatically with a formula that adds numbers above and […]
This article demonstrates formulas that return the last value in a given cell range or column. The image above shows […]
Sum numerical ranges between two numbers
This article explains how to build an array formula that sums numerical ranges. Example, I want to know how to […]
How to calculate overlapping time ranges
I found an old post that I think is interesting to write about today. Think of two overlapping ranges, it […]
Sort and return unique distinct single digits from cell range
This article demonstrates a formula that filters unique distinct single digits from a cell range containing numbers. Cell range B3:B6 […]
Find last matching value in an unsorted list
This article demonstrates a formula that returns the last matching value based on a given condition. The above image shows […]
Lookup with any number of criteria
This article demonstrates a formula that allows you to search a data set using any number of conditions, however, one […]
Count specific multiple text strings in a given cell range
This article demonstrates an array formula that counts how many times multiple text strings exist in a cell range. The […]
The array formula in cell C3 extracts the first character from first, middle and last name. The formula works fine […]
Extract table headers based on a condition
This article demonstrates an array formula that returns the table header based on a condition. For example, in cell C8 […]
Lookup multiple values across columns and return a single value
This article demonstrates how to get a value from a dataset based on multiple conditions across multiple columns. S.Babu asks: […]
Find entry based on conditions
Bill Truax asks: Hello Oscar, I am building a spreadsheet for tracking calls for my local fire department. I have a […]
Katie asks: I have 57 sheets many of which are linked together by formulas, I need to get numbers from […]
7 days (weekly) date ranges using a formula
Shannon asks:I need a formula that if I enter a start date in field B1 such as 6/8/11 it will […]
Running totals based on criteria
Andrew asks: LOVE this example, my issue/need is, I need to add the results. So instead of States and Names, […]
Question: It's easy to sum a list by multiple criteria, you just use array formula a la: =SUM((column_plane=TRUE)*(column_countries="USA")*(column_producer="Boeing")*(column_to_sum)) But all […]
Formula for matching a date within a date range
This article demonstrates how to match a specified date to date ranges. The image above shows a formula in cell […]
Find the most recent date that meets a particular condition
This article demonstrates how to return the latest date based on a condition using formulas or a Pivot Table. The […]
Sum values between two dates and based on a condition
In this post, I will provide a formula to sum values in column (Qty) where a column (Date) meets two […]
Formula in B14: =INDEX(D3:D6, SUMPRODUCT(--(C10=B3:B6), --(C11=C3:C6), ROW(D3:D6)-MIN(ROW(D3:D6))+1)) Alternative array formula #1 in B15: =INDEX(D3:D6, MATCH(C10&"-"&C11, B3:B6&"-"&C3:C6, 0)) Alternative array formula […]
I this article I will show you how to get numerical values from a cell range manually and using an […]
Question: I have a column "B" with a last name.. I have another columb with a date in it "C"... […]
Count text string in a range (case sensitive)
Question: How do I count the number of times a text string exists in a column? The text string may […]
Count a specific text string in a cell
Table of Contents Count a specific text string in a cell Count text string in a range (case sensitive) Count […]
How to perform a two-dimensional lookup
Question: How would I go about looking up data in a cross-reference table. I have the header row (i.e. 24) […]
Question: I am trying to create an excel spreadsheet that has a date range. Example: Cell A1 1/4/2009-1/10/2009 Cell B1 […]
Table of Contents Sum unique numbers Get Excel *.xlsx file Sum unique distinct numbers Get Excel *.xlsx file Sum number […]
Count dates inside a date range
How do I automatically count dates in a specific date range? Array formula in cell D3: =SUM(IF(($A$2:$A$10<$D$2)*($A$2:$A$10>$D$1), 1, 0)) + […]
Count how many times a string exists in a cell range (case insensitive)
Question: How do I count how many times a word exists in a range of cells? It does not have […]
This article demonstrates formulas that extract the nearest number in a cell range to a condition. The image above shows […]
Calculate last date of a given month
The formula in cell C3 calculates the last date for the given month and year in cell B3. =DATE(YEAR(B3), MONTH(B3)+1, […]
Find the most recent date in a list
The image above shows a formula in cell D3 that extracts the most recent date in cell range B3:B15. =MAX(B3:B15) […]
Find the smallest number in a list that is larger than a given number
This article demonstrates formulas that lets you extract the smallest number larger than a given number. The example above specifies […]
The SUBTOTAL function lets you sum values in a cell range that have some rows hidden or filtered, the picture […]