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The goal of this formula is to verify whether the values in column B follow the format xx-xxxx-xxx, where "x" represents any single character. The IF function doesn't support wildcards directly, so we can't use IF by itself. Instead, we can combine the IF function with the COUNTIF function...Read more

In this example, the goal is to calculate the average call time (duration in minutes) for each month listed in column G using the dates in column B and the durations in column E. The article below explains two approaches. The first formula is based on the ...Read more

In this example, the goal is to create a list of pay dates that follow a semimonthly schedule. A semimonthly pay schedule means employees are paid twice a month, usually on fixed dates such as the 1st and 15th or the 15th and the last day of the month. This results in 24 pay periods over...Read more

Note: If you are new to INDEX and MATCH, see: How to use INDEX and MATCH

In a standard configuration, the INDEX function retrieves a value at a given row and column. For example, to get the value at row 2 and column 3 in a given range:

...Read more

The goal in this example is to use a formula to report which things exist in a cell. The list of things to check for is in the named range things (E5:E9). The result is returned as a comma separated text string.

The first step in...Read more

In this example, the goal is to sum Amounts in column C by state using the two-letter codes in column E. Note the states are abbreviated, "CA" is California, "FL" is Florida, "TX" is Texas, and "WA" is Washington. The challenge in this case is that the state abbreviations are embedded...Read more

In this example, we have a list of URLs. The goal is to get the portion of each URL that appears after the domain name. In the current version of Excel, the easiest way to do this is to use the TEXTAFTER function. In an older version of Excel, you can use a formula based on the MID, FIND,...Read more

Excel doesn't have a way to cast the letters in a text string to an array directly in a formula. As a workaround, this formula uses the MID function, with help from the ROW and INDIRECT functions to achieve the same result. The formula in C5, copied down, is:...Read more

In a nutshell, this formula uses the LARGE function to find the nth largest value in a set of data. Once we have that value, we plug it into a standard INDEX and MATCH formula to retrieve the associated name. In other words, we use the nth largest value...Read more

Traditionally, counting unique items with an Excel formula has been a tricky problem, because there hasn't been a dedicated unique function. However, that changed when dynamic arrays were added to Excel 365, along with several new functions...Read more

In this example, the goal to calculate the difference as a percentage between two values then check the result to see if its within a given target percentage. The values come from the Expected and Actual columns in the worksheet. The challenge is that the difference might be negative or positive...Read more

The Excel RANDBETWEEN function returns a random integer between given numbers.  In the example shown, the formula in B5 is:

=RANDBETWEEN(1,100)

This formula is then copied down from B5 to...Read more

The goal is to display a blank cell based on a specific condition. In the worksheet shown, we want to return the value from column C, but only when the value in column B is "A". If the value in column B is anything else, we want to display nothing. The easiest way to solve this problem is with...Read more

The goal is to generate a dynamic list of sequential working days with a formula. The start date should be a variable input, and weekends and holidays should be automatically excluded from the output. In the current version of Excel, the easiest way to solve this problem is to use the...Read more

In this example, the goal is to calculate total amounts in column C that occur in the last 30 days, based on a current date of December 30, 2022. There are three basic approaches to solving this problem: (1) a traditional approach based on the SUMIFS...Read more

In this example, the goal is to sum the amounts shown in column C by month using the dates in column B. The article below explains two approaches. One approach is based on the SUMIFS function, which can sum numeric values based on multiple...Read more

Excel does not provide a dedicated "contains" function, but you can create a custom function to test if a cell contains one or many strings with the LAMBDA function. LAMBDA functions do not require VBA, but are only available in...Read more

In this example, the goal is to calculate a total for each year that appears in column F. All data is in an Excel Table called data in the range B5:D16. The main challenge is that we have dates in column B, but we don't have separate year...Read more

In this example, the goal is to return a list of the locations for a specific value in a 2D array of values (i.e. a table). The target value is entered in cell N5, and the table being tested is in the range C4:L16. The coordinates are supplied from row 4 and column B, as seen in the worksheet....Read more

In this example, the goal is to calculate the maximum value of every "nth" column in a row of data, where n is a variable entered in the named range M2. This problem can be solved in several ways, as explained below. The explanation below also includes a formula...Read more

The YEAR function extracts the year from a valid Excel date. For example:

=YEAR("15-Jun-2021") // returns 2021

In this case, we are giving YEAR and array of dates in...Read more

In this example, the goal is to return the total for an entire column in an Excel worksheet. One way to do this is to use a full column reference.

Full column references

Excel supports "full column" like this:

...Read more

The goal is to identify dates in column B that fall between a given start date and end date. The start and end dates are exposed as inputs on the worksheet that can be changed at any time, labeled "Start" and "End" in the example shown.

Named ranges

For convenience, both...Read more

In this example, the goal is to sum the amounts in column D by week number, using the dates in column C to determine the week number. The week numbers in column G are manually entered. The final results should appear in column H. All data is in an Excel Table named data in...Read more

Note: this example was created before the VSTACK function and HSTACK function were introduced to Excel. VSTACK combines ranges vertically and HSTACK combines ranges horizontally. These functions are a much...Read more

The goal is to generate a series of dates by month based on a given start date. In the current version of Excel, the easiest way to solve this problem is to use the SEQUENCE function inside the EDATE...Read more