Course outline / Basic formulas
Lesson 4 of 75 · Beginner · 4 exercises
Order of operations
Know which part of a formula Excel works out first, and control it with brackets.
What you'll practise
- Brackets come first
- Raise to a power with ^
- Add tax to a total
- Average three cells by hand
Brackets come first
Excel doesn't simply read a formula from left to right. It multiplies and divides before it adds and subtracts, just like school maths.
=20-5*3 gives 5, because 5*3 is worked out first.
Brackets change the order: anything inside them is calculated first, so =(20-5)*3 gives 45.
In cell E2, take the discount in C2 off the price in A2, then multiply by the quantity in B2.
Raise to a power with ^
The ^ symbol (Shift+6) raises a number to a power. =4^2 is 4 squared, 16, and =2^3 is 2 cubed, 8.
Powers come before multiplication and division in the order Excel uses.
In cell E2, square the price in A2.
Add tax to a total
To add a percentage, multiply by 1 plus the rate. A 10% tax means paying 110% of the price, which is *(1+10%).
The brackets matter: they make Excel add 1 to the rate before multiplying.
In cell E2, multiply the price in A2 by the quantity in B2, then add the tax rate in D2.
Average three cells by hand
Dividing a sum is a classic trap. =A2+B2+C2/3 only divides C2 by 3, because division happens before addition.
Put the additions in brackets first, then divide.
In cell E2, add A2, B2 and C2, then divide the total by 3.
Try it in a real spreadsheet
Every step checks your answer instantly and tells you exactly what to fix.