Functions in Excel

There are several hundred functions within excel but most of us will probably only use 10-15
of them. Listed below are some of the more commonly used ones:-

FUNCTION What it does

returns the maximum value in the range
=MAX(range_name)
specified
returns the minimum value in the range
=MIN(range_name)
specified
returns the average value in the range
=AVERAGE(range_name)
specified
returns the number of entries in the given
=COUNT(range_name,NAME)
range
returns the number of times a particular
=COUNTIF(range_name,NAME,range_name)
condition is met
returns a value if the given NAME is met in
=SUMIF(range_name,NAME)
the range name

A B C D E F G
1 First Quarter Exam Scores
2 Student Exam 1 Exam 2 Exam 3 Exam 4 Average Pass/Fail
3 Allan 87 90 79 96
4 Billinger 77 90 65 97
5 Crane 65 95 65 80
6 Davis 85 67 87 72
7 Evans 68 88 88 85

In the above example we want to enter a formula into cell F3 that returns the average exam
mark for each student.

To do this:

1. Place your cursor in Cell F3

2. Enter the following formula: =AVERAGE(B3:E3) and then press ENTER

You will now have the average exam mark for each student. You can substitute the word
AVERAGE with the following words to alter the formula:

MAX will return the highest mark per student

MIN will return the lowest mark per student

COUNT will return the total number of marks per student (e.g.
one student could have missed an exam)

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 Using SUMIF
This command allows you to add up a range that meets a certain criteria. For example, you
may have a list of sales men and each sale they have achieved. You can use SUMIF to add
up all the sales for each individual sales person i.e. all the sales for Jones.

1. Open the desired worksheet

2. Select the cell where you want the result of the function to appear
3. From the Formulas ribbon, in the Function Library group, click Insert
Function or on the Formula Bar, click INSERT FUNCTION
The Insert Function dialog box appears.
4. From the Or select a category pull-down list, select All or Math & Trig
5. From the Select a function scroll box, select SUMIF
6. Click OK
The Function Arguments dialog box appears.

7. In the Range text box, type the range of cells to analyse or

a) Click Collapse Dialog

b) Within your worksheet, select the range of cells to analyze

NOTE: These are the cells which will be analyzed to see if they meet the criteria you
select.

c) Click Restore Dialog

8. In the Criteria text box, type the appropriate criteria, such as the numerical range,
expression (e.g., >2), or text value e.g. Jones

9. EXAMPLE: If you would like to add the sales values for the salesman called Jones type
Jones

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 10. In the Sum_range text box, type the range of cells

11. Note: These are the cells which will be summed if the criteria has been met. If left blank,
the cells specified in the Range will be added or

a) Click Collapse Dialog

b) Within your worksheet, select the range of cells to analyze
b) Click Restore Dialog

12. Click OK - The formula appears in the Formula Bar and the result of the function appears
in the cell you selected.

EXAMPLE

In the following example we want to enter a SUMIF formula in cell E2 which adds up all the
sales in Column B if the name in Column A equals the Value in Column D.

The formula we enter will be as follows:-

=SUMIF(A:A,D2,B:B)

What the above formula is instructing is to look in the whole of column A (A:A) and if the
name is the same as the value in cell D2 add the appropriate value in Column B. As this
formula is relative when copied down D2 will change to D3 and so on thus adding up the
cells for each individual sales person.

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 Using COUNT
This function allows you to count the number of numeric values appears in a given list. i.e.
numeric values not blank entries or text entries.

1. Click in the cell where you require the formula

2. Type =COUNT(
3. Enter the range that you wish Excel to evaluate
4. Type a closing bracket and press Enter

Variations of this are:

=COUNTA Will count all cells with Data (i.e. text)

=COUNTBLANK Will count blank cells

Using COUNTIF
Countif is a similar function to SUMIF except it counts the number of entries that equal a
given criteria. For example, in the example below we may wish to count the number of sales
per salesperson.

In cell H2 we are going to enter a formula that counts the number of sales for each sales
person listed in column G.

This formula can either be typed straight into the cell or you can use the Insert Function
command as follows:-

1. Activate the Formulas ribbon and choose the

Insert Function command which is the first
option on this ribbon
2. Type COUNTIF and click on Go
3. Select COUNTIF and click on OK
4. In the Range box type A:A this instructs Excel
to look in the whole of Column A
5. In the Criteria box type G2
6. Click on OK – copy the formula down into the
adjacent cells and the formula will alter to
display the number of sales for each person

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