Simple Formulas and Calculations

Formula input can convert exprressions and give their results. It supports most of the common ones that comes to mind like:

And sure, you can combine them to create more complex expressions. Excel will handle all calculations for you, with or without parentheses. For example:

But remember, this is Excel, not a calculator app. We can gain its full potential by using cell references instead of literal values. For example, we can calculate the sum of values in a row using cell references. When the value in any cell changes, the sum will automatically update.

You should be careful and avoid using a cell to calculate a value for itself if it was already used in the calculation for the cell you want to update. This can lead to circular references and potentially incorrect results.

Note

A circular reference error in Excel occurs when a formula refers back to its own cell, either directly or indirectly, causing an endless loop. This can happen when a formula includes the cell it is in as part of its calculation or when a series of formulas reference each other in a way that creates a loop.