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The basics of Excel formulas Before providing the basic Excel formulas list, let's define the key terms just to make sure we are on the same page. So, what do we call an Excel formula and Excel function?

Formula is an expression that calculates values in a cell or in a range of cells. For example, =A2+A2+A3+A4 is a formula that adds up the values in cells A2 through A4.

Function is a predefined formula already available in Excel. Functions perform specific calculations in a particular order based on the specified values, called arguments, or parameters. For example, instead of specifying each value to be summed like in the above formula, you can use the SUM function to add up a range of cells: =SUM(A2:A4)

You can find all available Excel functions in the Function Library on the Formulas tab: Basic Excel functions

There exist 400+ functions in Excel, and the number is growing by version to version. Of course, it's next to impossible to memorize all of them, and you actually don't need to. The Function Wizard will help you find the function best suited for a particular task, while the Excel Formula Intellisense will prompt the function's syntax and arguments as soon as you type the function's name preceded by an equal sign in a cell:

Excel Formula Intellisense

Clicking the function's name will turn it into a blue hyperlink, which will open the Help topic for that function.

Tip. You don't necessarily have to type a function name in all caps, Microsoft Excel will automatically capitalize it once you finish typing the formula and press the Enter key to complete it. 10 Excel basic functions you should definitely know What follows below is a list of 10 simple yet really helpful functions that are a necessary skill for everyone who wishes to turn from an Excel novice to an Excel professional.

SUM The first Excel function you should be familiar with is the one that performs the basic arithmetic operation of addition:

SUM(number1, [number2], …) In the syntax of all Excel functions, an argument enclosed in [square brackets] is optional, other arguments are required. Meaning, your Sum formula should include at least 1 number, reference to a cell or a range of cells. For example:

=SUM(B2:B6) - adds up values in cells B2 through B6.

=SUM(B2, B6) - adds up values in cells B2 and B6.

If necessary, you can perform other calculations within a single formula, for example, add up values in cells B2 through B6, and then divide the sum by 5:

=SUM(B2:B6)/5

To sum with conditions, use the SUMIF function: in the 1st argument, you enter the range of cells to be tested against the criteria (A2:A6), in the 2nd argument - the criteria itself (D2), and in the last argument - the cells to sum (B2:B6):

=SUMIF(A2:A6, D2, B2:B6)

In your Excel worksheets, the formulas may look something similar to this: Using SUM formulas in Excel

Tip. The fastest way to sum a column or row of numbers is to select a cell next to the numbers you want to sum (the cell immediately below the last value in the column or to the right of the last number in the row), and click the AutoSum button on the Home tab, in the Formats group. Excel will insert a SUM formula for you automatically. Useful resources: Excel Sum formula examples - formulas to total a column, rows, only filtered (visible) cells, or sum across sheets. Excel AutoSum - the fastest way to sum a column or row of numbers. SUMIF in Excel - formula examples to conditionally sum cells. SUMIFS in Excel - formula examples to sum cells based on multiple criteria. AVERAGE The Excel AVERAGE function does exactly what its name suggests, i.e. finds an average, or arithmetic mean, of numbers. Its syntax is similar to SUM's:

AVERAGE(number1, [number2], …) Having a closer look at the formula from the previous section (=SUM(B2:B6)/5), what does it actually do? Sums values in cells B2 through B6, and then divides the result by 5. And what do you call adding up a group of numbers and then dividing the sum by the count of those numbers? Yep, an average!

The Excel AVERAGE function performs these calculations behind the scenes. So, instead of dividing sum by count, you can simply put this formula in a cell:

=AVERAGE(B2:B6)

To average cells based on condition, use the following AVERAGEIF formula, where A2:A6 is the criteria range, D3 is he criteria, and B2:B6 are the cells to average:

=AVERAGEIF(A2:A6, D3, B2:B6)

Using an Average formula in Excel

Useful resources: Excel AVERAGE - average cells with numbers. Excel AVERAGEA - find an average of cells with any data (numbers, Boolean and text values). Excel AVERAGEIF - average cells based on one criterion. Excel AVERAGEIFS - average cells based on multiple criteria. How to calculate weighted average in Excel How to find moving average in Excel MAX & MIN The MAX and MIN formulas in Excel get the largest and smallest value in a set of numbers, respectively. For our sample data set, the formulas will be as simple as:

=MAX(B2:B6)

=MIN(B2:B6)

Using MIN and MAX formulas in Excel

COUNT & COUNTA If you are curious to know how many cells in a given range contain numeric values (numbers or dates), don't waste your time counting them by hand. The Excel COUNT function will bring you the count in a heartbeat:

COUNT(value1, [value2], …) While the COUNT function deals only with those cells that contain numbers, the COUNTA function counts all cells that are not blank, whether they contain numbers, dates, times, text, logical values of TRUE and FALSE, errors or empty text strings (""):

COUNTA (value1, [value2], …) For example, to find out how many cells in column B contain numbers, use this formula:

=COUNT(B:B)

To count all non-empty cells in column B, go with this one:

=COUNTA(B:B)

In both formulas, you use the so-called "whole column reference" (B:B) that refers to all the cells within column B.

The following screenshot shows the difference: while COUNT processes only numbers, COUNTA outputs the total number of non-blank cells in column B, including the the text value in the column header.

COUNT and COUNTA formulas in Excel

Useful resources: Excel COUNT function - a quick way to count cells with numbers. Excel COUNTA function - count cells with any values (non-empty cells). Excel COUNTIF function - count cells that meet one condition. Excel COUNTIFS function - count cells with several criteria. IF Judging by the number of IF-related comments on our blog, it's the most popular function in Excel. In simple terms, you use an IF formula to ask Excel to test a certain condition and return one value or perform one calculation if the condition is met, and another value or calculation if the condition is not met:

IF(logical_test, [value_if_true], [value_if_false]) For example, the following IF statement checks if the order is completed (i.e. there is a value in column C) or not. To test if a cell is not blank, you use the "not equal to" operator (<>) in combination with an empty string (""). As the result, if cell C2 is not empty, the formula returns "Yes", otherwise "No":

=IF(C2<>"", "Yes", "No")

Using an IF formula in Excel

Useful resources: IF function in Excel with formula examples How to use nested IFs in Excel IF formulas with multiple AND/OR conditions TRIM If your obviously correct Excel formulas return just a bunch of errors, one of the first things to check is extra spaces in the referenced cells (You may be surprised to know how many leading, trailing and in-between spaces lurk unnoticed in your sheets just until something goes wrong!).

There are several ways to remove unwanted spaces in Excel, with the TRIM function being the easiest one:

TRIM(text) For example, to trim extra spaces in column A, enter the following formula in cell A1, and then copy it down the column:

=TRIM(A1)

It will eliminate all extra spaces in cells but a single space character between words: Excel TRIM formula

Useful resources: Excel TRIM function with formula examples How to delete line breaks and non-printing characters How to remove non-breaking spaces How to delete a specific non-printing character LEN Whenever you want to know the number of characters in a certain cell, LEN is the function to use:

LEN(text) Wish to find out how many characters are in cell A2? Just type the below formula into another cell:

=LEN(A2)

Please keep in mind that the Excel LEN function counts absolutely all characters including spaces: Using a LEN formula in Excel

Want to get the total count of characters in a range or cells or count only specific characters? Please check out the following resources.

Useful resources: Excel LEN formulas to count characters in a cell Count a total number of characters in a range Count specific characters in a cell Count specific character in a range AND & OR These are the two most popular logical functions to check multiple criteria. The difference is how they do this:

AND returns TRUE if all conditions are met, FALSE otherwise. OR returns TRUE if any condition is met, FALSE otherwise. While rarely used on their own, these functions come in very handy as part of bigger formulas.

For example, to check the test results in columns B and C and return "Pass" if both are greater than 60, "Fail" otherwise, use the following IF formula with an embedded AND statement:

=IF(AND(B2>60, B2>60), "Pass", "Fail")

If it's sufficient to have just one test score greater than 60 (either test 1 or test 2), embed the OR statement:

=IF(OR(B2>60, B2>60), "Pass", "Fail")