Google Sheets 101: Simple Math

LESSONS

Math-based functions make calculations in spreadsheets quick and easy.

Want to add individual sales together to get the total?
Need to quickly identify the most expensive item in a list?
Have to find the average score on a test?

No need to worry about mathematical operators, just use a function.

Here are the most common math functions:

	A	B
1	Function	Return
2	SUM	All of the provided numbers added up to a total.
3	COUNT	How many numbers are present (not text, just numbers).
4	AVERAGE	The average, that is, the total divided by the count.
5	MIN	The minimum value present.
6	MAX	The maximum value present.

Syntax

All of these functions do some basic math and have the same syntax:

=FUNCTION(value1, [value2, ...])

The 'values' can be numbers, cell references, cell ranges, text (which will be ignored), or a combination of all of these. You're feeding the function data that it can use to make a calculation.

The square brackets around [value2, ...] mean it's optional. The only required argument is the first one.

The ellipsis ... at the end means that these functions can take as many arguments as needed.

Example

Here’s a list of grocery items with their prices:

	A	B
1	Item	Price
2	Apples	$4.42
3	Bananas	$3.34
4	Carrots	$2.90
5	Mushrooms	$5.29
6	Onions	$1.38
7	Chicken	$10.62
8	Milk	$2.71
9	Eggs	$3.64
10	Cheese	$5.69
11	Butter	$4.41

Here’s how to use each function on this list to get specific information and what it would return:

	A	B	C
1	What you want	Function	Return
2	Total cost	=SUM(B2:B11)	$44.40
3	Number of items	=COUNT(B2:B11)	10
4	Average price	=AVERAGE(B2:B11)	$4.44
5	Lowest price	=MIN(B2:B11)	$1.38
6	Highest price	=MAX(B2:B11)	$10.62

Math Exercises

Enter a formula for each question in the formula bar for the spreadsheet below to access the next lesson.

1. SUM

In cell B8, enter a formula using the SUM function that gets total sales for the team using a range reference.

2. COUNT

In cell B9, enter a formula using the COUNT function that gets the number of sales people in the team using a range reference.

3. AVERAGE

In cell B10, enter a formula using the AVERAGE function that gets the average sales per person using a range reference.

4. MIN

In cell B11, enter a formula using the MIN function that gets the lowest sales figures using a range reference.

5. MAX

In cell B12, enter a formula using the MAX function that gets the lowest sales figures using a range reference.

Current question: See the correct formula or clear the formula bar.

	A	B	C
1	First	Last	Sales
2	Dwight	Schrute	10,000
3	Jim	Halpert	8,000
4	Stanley	Hudson	7,000
5	Phyllis	Vance	6,000
6	Andy	Bernard	4,000
7
8	SUM
9	COUNT
10	AVERAGE
11	MIN
12	MAX
13

Next Lesson

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Google Sheets 101: Simple Math

Syntax

Example

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