101 Excel Functions

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This guide describes important Excel functions. Click function names for more
information and detailed examples. We also have a large list of example
formulas, a more complete list of Excel functions, and video training. If you are new to
Excel formulas altogether, see this introduction.

Quick navigation
ABS, AGGREGATE, AND, AVERAGE, AVERAGEIF, AVERAGEIFS, CEILING, CHAR, CHOOSE,
CLEAN, CODE, COLUMN, COLUMNS, CONCAT, CONCATENATE, CONVERT, COUNT,
COUNTA, COUNTBLANK, COUNTIF, COUNTIFS, DATE, DATEDIF, DAY, EDATE, EOMONTH,
EXACT, FIND, FLOOR, GETPIVOTDATA, HLOOKUP, HOUR, HYPERLINK, IF, IFERROR, IFNA,
IFS, INDEX, INDIRECT, INT, ISBLANK, ISERROR, ISEVEN, ISFORMULA, ISLOGICAL,
ISNUMBER, ISODD, ISTEXT, LARGE, LEFT, LEN, LOOKUP, LOWER, MATCH, MAX, MAXIFS,
MID, MIN, MINIFS, MINUTE, MOD, MODE, MONTH, MROUND, NETWORKDAYS, NOT,
NOW, OFFSET, OR, PROPER, RAND, RANDBETWEEN, RANK, REPLACE, RIGHT, ROUND,
ROUNDDOWN, ROUNDUP, ROW, ROWS, SEARCH, SECOND, SMALL, SUBSTITUTE,
SUBTOTAL, SUM, SUMIF, SUMIFS, SUMPRODUCT, TEXT, TEXTJOIN, TIME, TODAY,
TRANSPOSE, TRIM, UPPER, VLOOKUP, WEEKDAY, WEEKNUM, WORKDAY, YEAR,
YEARFRAC

Date and Time Functions

Excel provides many functions to work with dates and times.

NOW and TODAY

You can get the current date with the TODAY function and the current date and time
with the NOW Function. Technically, the NOW function returns the current date and
time, but you can format as time only, as seen below:

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TODAY() // returns current date
NOW() // returns current time

Note: these are volatile functions and will recalculate with every worksheet change. If
you want a static value, use date and time shortcuts.

DAY, MONTH, YEAR, and DATE

You can use the DAY, MONTH, and YEAR functions to disassemble any date into its raw
components, and the DATE function to put things back together again.

HOUR, MINUTE, SECOND, and TIME

Excel provides a set of parallel functions for times. You can use the HOUR, MINUTE, and
SECOND functions to extract pieces of a time, and you can assemble a TIME from
individual components with the TIME function.

DATEDIF and YEARFRAC

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You can use the DATEDIF function to get time between dates in years, months, or days.
DATEDIF can also be configured to get total time in "normalized" denominations, i.e. "2
years and 5 months and 27 days".

Use YEARFRAC to get fractional years:

=YEARFRAC("14-Nov-2018","10-Jun-2021") // returns 2.57

EDATE and EOMONTH

A common task with dates is to shift a date forward (or backward) by a given number of
months. You can use the EDATE and EOMONTH functions for this. EDATE moves by
month and retains the day. EOMONTH works the same way, but always returns the last
day of the month.

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EDATE(date,6) // 6 months forward
EOMONTH(date,6) // 6 months forward (end of month)

WORKDAY and NETWORKDAYS

To figure out a date n working days in the future, you can use the WORKDAY function. To
calculate the number of workdays between two dates, you can use NETWORKDAYS.

WORKDAY(start,n,holidays) // date n workdays in future

Video: How to calculate due dates with WORKDAY

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NETWORKDAYS(start,end,holidays) // number of workdays between dates

Note: Both functions automatically skip weekends (Saturday and Sunday) and will also
skip holidays, if provided. If you need more flexibility on what days are considered
weekends, see the WORKDAY.INTL function and NETWORKDAYS.INTL function.

WEEKDAY and WEEKNUM

To figure out the day of week from a date, Excel provides the WEEKDAY
function. WEEKDAY returns a number between 1-7 that indicates Sunday, Monday,
Tuesday, etc. Use the WEEKNUM function to get the week number in a given year.

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Engineering

CONVERT
Most Engineering functions are pretty technical...you'll find a lot of functions for complex
numbers in this section. However, the CONVERT function is quite useful for everyday unit
conversions. You can use CONVERT to change units for distance, weight, temperature,
and much more.

=CONVERT(72,"F","C") // returns 22.2

Information Functions

ISBLANK, ISERROR, ISNUMBER, and ISFORMULA

Excel provides many functions for checking the value in a cell,
including ISNUMBER, ISTEXT, ISLOGICAL, ISBLANK, ISERROR, and ISFORMULA These
functions are sometimes called the "IS" functions, and they all return TRUE or FALSE
based on a cell's contents.

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Excel also has ISODD and ISEVEN functions will test a number to see if it's even or odd.

By the way, the green fill in the screenshot above is applied automatically with
a conditional formatting formula.

Logical Functions
Excel's logical functions are a key building block of many advanced formulas. Logical
functions return the boolean values TRUE or FALSE. If you need a primer on logical
formulas, this video goes through many examples.

AND, OR and NOT

The core of Excel's logical functions are the AND function, the OR function, and the NOT
function. In the screen below, each of these function is used to run a simple test on the
values in column B:

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=AND(B5>3,B5<9)
=OR(B5=3,B5=9)
=NOT(B5=2)

Video: How to build logical formulas

Guide: 50 examples of formula criteria

IFERROR and IFNA

The IFERROR function and IFNA function can be used as a simple way to trap and handle
errors. In the screen below, VLOOKUP is used to retrieve cost from a menu item. Column
F contains just a VLOOKUP function, with no error handling. Column G shows how to use
IFNA with VLOOKUP to display a custom message when an unrecognized item is entered.

=VLOOKUP(E5,menu,2,0) // no error trapping

=IFNA(VLOOKUP(E5,menu,2,0),"Not found") // catch errors

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Whereas IFNA only catches an #N/A error, the IFERROR function will catch any formula
error.

IF and IFS functions

The IF function is one of the most used functions in Excel. In the screen below, IF checks
test scores and assigns "pass" or "fail":

Multiple IF functions can be nested together to perform more complex logical tests.

New in Excel via Office 365, the IFS function can run multiple logical tests
without nesting IFs.

=IFS(C5<60,"F",C5<70,"D",C5<80,"C",C5<90,"B",C5>=90,"A")

Lookup and Reference Functions

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VLOOKUP and HLOOKUP
Excel offers a number of functions to lookup and retrieve data. Most famous of all is
VLOOKUP:

=VLOOKUP(C5,$F$5:$G$7,2,TRUE)

More: 23 things to know about VLOOKUP.

HLOOKUP works like VLOOKUP, but expects data arranged horizontally:

=HLOOKUP(C5,$G$4:$I$5,2,TRUE)

INDEX and MATCH

For more complicated lookups, INDEX and MATCH offers more flexibility and power:

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=INDEX(C5:E12,MATCH(H4,B5:B12,0),MATCH(H5,C4:E4,0))

Both the INDEX function and the MATCH function are powerhouse functions that turn up
in all kinds of formulas.

More: How to use INDEX and MATCH

LOOKUP
The LOOKUP function has default behaviors that make it useful when solving certain
problems. LOOKUP assumes values are sorted in ascending order and always performs
an approximate match. When LOOKUP can't find a match, it will match the next smallest
value. In the example below we are using LOOKUP to find the last entry in a column:

ROW and COLUMN

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You can use the ROW function and COLUMN function to find row and column numbers
on a worksheet. Notice both ROW and COLUMN return values for the current cell if no
reference is supplied:

The row function also shows up often in advanced formulas that process data with
relative row numbers.

ROWS and COLUMNS

The ROWS function and COLUMNS function provide a count of rows in a reference. In
the screen below, we are counting rows and columns in an Excel Table named "Table1".

Note ROWS returns a count of data rows in a table, excluding the header row. By the
way, here are 23 things to know about Excel Tables.

HYPERLINK
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You can use the HYPERLINK function to construct a link with a formula. Note
HYPERLINK lets you build both external links and internal links:

=HYPERLINK(C5,B5)

GETPIVOTDATA
The GETPIVOTDATA function is useful for retrieving information from existing pivot
tables.

=GETPIVOTDATA("Sales",$B$4,"Region",I6,"Product",I7)

CHOOSE
The CHOOSE function is handy any time you need to make a choice based on a number:

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=CHOOSE(2,"red","blue","green") // returns "blue"

Video: How to use the CHOOSE function

TRANSPOSE
The TRANSPOSE function gives you an easy way to transpose vertical data to horizontal,
and vice versa.

{=TRANSPOSE(B4:C9)}

Note: TRANSPOSE is a formula and is therefore dynamic. If you just need to do a one-
time transpose operation, use Paste Special instead.

OFFSET
The OFFSET function is useful for all kinds of dynamic ranges. From a starting location, it
lets you specify row and column offsets, and also the final row and column size. The
result is a range that can be respond dynamically to changing conditions and inputs. You

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can feed this range to other functions, as in the screen below, where OFFSET builds a
range that is fed to the SUM function:

=SUM(OFFSET(B4,1,I4,4,1)) // sum of Q3

INDIRECT
The INDIRECT function allows you to build references as text. This concept is a bit tricky
to understand at first, but it can be useful in many situations. Below, we are using
INDIRECT to get values from cell A1 in 5 different worksheets. Each reference is dynamic.
If a sheet name changes, the reference will update.

=INDIRECT(B5&"!A1") // =Sheet1!A1

The INDIRECT function is also used to "lock" references so they won't change, when rows
or columns are added or deleted. For more details, see linked examples at the bottom of
the INDIRECT function page.

Caution: both OFFSET and INDIRECT are volatile functions and can slow down large or
complicated spreadsheets.
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STATISTICAL Functions

COUNT and COUNTA

You can count numbers with the COUNT function and non-empty cells with COUNTA.
You can count blank cells with COUNTBLANK, but in the screen below we are counting
blank cells with COUNTIF, which is more generally useful.

=COUNT(B5:F5) // count numbers

=COUNTA(B5:F5) // count numbers and text
=COUNTIF(B5:F5,"") // count blanks

COUNTIF and COUNTIFS

For conditional counts, the COUNTIF function can apply one criteria. The COUNTIFS
function can apply multiple criteria at the same time:

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=COUNTIF(C5:C12,"red") // count red
=COUNTIF(F5:F12,">50") // count total > 50
=COUNTIFS(C5:C12,"red",D5:D12,"TX") // red and tx
=COUNTIFS(C5:C12,"blue",F5:F12,">50") // blue > 50

Video: How to use the COUNTIF function

SUM, SUMIF, SUMIFS

To sum everything, use the SUM function. To sum conditionally, use SUMIF or SUMIFS.
Following the same pattern as the counting functions, the SUMIF function can apply only
one criteria while the SUMIFS function can apply multiple criteria.

=SUM(F5:F12) // everything
=SUMIF(C5:C12,"red",F5:F12) // red only
=SUMIF(F5:F12,">50") // over 50
=SUMIFS(F5:F12,C5:C12,"red",D5:D12,"tx") // red & tx
=SUMIFS(F5:F12,C5:C12,"blue",F5:F12,">50") // blue & >50

Video: How to use the SUMIF function

AVERAGE, AVERAGEIF, and AVERAGEIFS

Following the same pattern, you can calculate an average with AVERAGE, AVERAGEIF, and
AVERAGEIFS.

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=AVERAGE(F5:F12) // all
=AVERAGEIF(C5:C12,"red",F5:F12) // red only
=AVERAGEIFS(F5:F12,C5:C12,"red",D5:D12,"tx") // red and tx

MIN, MAX, LARGE, SMALL

You can find largest and smallest values with MAX and MIN, and nth largest and smallest
values with LARGE and SMALL. In the screen below, "data" is the named range C5:C13,
used in all formulas.

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=MAX(data) // largest
=MIN(data) // smallest
=LARGE(data,1) // 1st largest
=LARGE(data,2) // 2nd largest
=LARGE(data,3) // 3rd largest
=SMALL(data,1) // 1st smallest
=SMALL(data,2) // 2nd smallest
=SMALL(data,3) // 3rd smallest

Video: How to find the nth smallest or largest value

MINIFS, MAXIFS
The MINIFS and MAXIFS. These functions let you find minimum and maximum values
with conditions:

Note: MINIFS and MAXIFS are new in Excel via Office 365.

MODE
The MODE function returns the most commonly occurring number in a range:

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=MODE(B5:G5) // returns 1

RANK
To rank values largest to smallest, or smallest to largest, use the RANK function:

Video: How to rank values with the RANK function

MATH Functions

ABS
To change negative values to positive use the ABS function.

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=ABS(-134.50) // returns 134.50

RAND and RANDBETWEEN

Both the RAND function and RANDBEWTEEN function can generate random numbers on
the fly. RAND creates long decimal numbers between zero and 1. RANDBETWEEN
generates random integers between two given numbers.

ROUND, ROUNDUP, ROUNDDOWN, INT

To round values up or down, use the ROUND function. To force rounding up to a given
number of digits, use ROUNDUP. To force rounding down, use ROUNDDOWN. To discard
the decimal part of a number altogether, use the INT function.

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MROUND, CEILING, FLOOR
To round values to a the nearest multiple use the MROUND function. The FLOOR
function and CEILING function also round to a given multiple. FLOOR forces rounding
down, and CEILING forces rounding up.

MOD
The MOD function returns the remainder after division. This sounds boring and geeky,
but MOD turns up in all kinds of formulas, especially formulas that need to do something
"every nth time". In the screen below, you can see how MOD returns zero every third
number when the divisor is 3:

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SUMPRODUCT
The SUMPRODUCT function is powerful and versatile tool when dealing with all kinds
data. You can use SUMPRODUCT to easily count and sum based on criteria, and you can
use it in elegant ways that just don't work with COUNTIFS and SUMIFS. In the screen
below, we are using SUMPRODUCT to count and sum orders in March. See the
SUMPRODUCT page for details and links to many examples.

SUBTOTAL
The SUBTOTAL function is an "aggregate function" that can perform a number of
operations on a set of data. All told, SUBTOTAL can perform 11 operations,
including SUM, AVERAGE, COUNT, MAX, MIN, etc. (see this page for the full list). The key

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feature of SUBTOTAL is that it will ignore rows that have been "filtered out" of an Excel
Table, and, optionally, rows that have been manually hidden. In the screen below,
SUBTOTAL is used to count and sum only the 7 visible rows in the table:

AGGREGATE
Like SUBTOTAL, the AGGREGATE function can also run a number of aggregate operations
on a set of data and can optionally ignore hidden rows. The key differences are that
AGGREGATE can run more operations (19 total) and can also ignore errors.

In the screen below, AGGREGATE is used to perform MIN, MAX, LARGE and SMALL
operations while ignoring errors. Normally, the error in cell B9 would prevent these
functions from returning a result. See this page for a full list of operations AGGREGATE
can perform.

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TEXT Functions

LEFT, RIGHT, MID

To extract characters from the left, right, or middle of text, use LEFT, RIGHT, and MID
functions:

LEN
The LEN function will return the length of a text string. LEN shows up in a lot of formulas
that count words or characters.

FIND, SEARCH
To look for specific text in a cell, use the FIND function or SEARCH function. These
functions return the numeric position of matching text, but SEARCH allows wildcards and
FIND is case-sensitive. Both functions will throw an error when text is not found, so wrap
in the ISNUMBER function to return TRUE or FALSE (example here).

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=FIND("Better the devil you know","devil") // returns 12
=SEARCH("This is not my beautiful wife","bea*") // returns 12

REPLACE, SUBSTITUTE
To replace text by position, use the REPLACE function. To replace text by matching, use
the SUBSTITUTE function. In the first example, REPLACE removes the two asterisks (**)
by replacing the first two characters with an empty string (""). In the second example,
SUBSTITUTE removes all hash characters (#) by replacing "#" with "".

CODE, CHAR
To figure out the numeric code for a character, use the CODE function. To translate the
numeric code back to a character, use the CHAR function. In the example below, CODE
translates each character in column B to its corresponding code. In column F, CHAR
translates the code back to a character.

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Video: How to use theCODE and CHAR functions

TRIM, CLEAN
To get rid of extra space in text, use the TRIM function. To remove line breaks and other
non-printing characters, use CLEAN.

Video: How to clean text with TRIM and CLEAN

CONCAT, TEXTJOIN, CONCATENATE

New in Excel via Office 365 are CONCAT and TEXTJOIN. The CONCAT function lets you
concatenate (join) multiple values, including a range of values without a delimiter. The
TEXTJOIN function does the same thing, but allows you to specify a delimiter and can
also ignore empty values.

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Excel also provides the CONCATENATE function, but it doesn't offer special features. I
would't bother with it and would instead concatenate directly with the ampersand (&)
character in a formula.

EXACT
The EXACT function allows you to compare two text strings in a case-sensitive manner.

UPPER, LOWER, PROPER

To change the case of text, use the UPPER, LOWER, and PROPER function

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Video: How to change case with formulas

TEXT
Last but definitely not least is the TEXT function. The text function lets you apply number
formatting to numbers (including dates, times, etc.) as text. This is especially useful when
you need to embed a formatted number in a message, like "Sale ends on [date]".

More: Detailed examples of custom number formatting.

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