← Excel from Scratch: Formulas, Functions, and Data Analysis
Lesson
Your first formula: arithmetic and the order of operations
Write arithmetic formulas with cell references and predict the result, taking operator precedence into account.
How a formula works in Excel
How a formula works in Excel
Every formula in Excel starts with the equal sign (=). That's what tells Excel the cell holds a calculation, not text. For example, type =2+3 in a cell and press Enter — Excel shows 5.
Arithmetic operators: + (addition), − (subtraction), * (multiplication), / (division), ^ (exponentiation). The order of calculation is the same as in math: exponents first, then multiplication and division (left to right), then addition and subtraction. Parentheses have the highest precedence and are evaluated first.
Instead of specific numbers, you can put a cell address in a formula: =A1+B1. Then, whenever the values in A1 or B1 change, the result recalculates automatically — that's the real power of formulas.
Important: in the US version of Excel, the decimal separator is a period. One and a half is written 1.5, and a comma separates thousands: 1,500. Many other language versions of Excel use a comma for decimals (1,5), so a file or a tutorial from another country may look different.
Lesson notes
How a formula works in Excel
Every formula in Excel starts with the equal sign (=). That's what tells Excel the cell holds a calculation, not text. For example, type =2+3 in a cell and press Enter — Excel shows 5.
Arithmetic operators: + (addition), − (subtraction), * (multiplication), / (division), ^ (exponentiation). The order of calculation is the same as in math: exponents first, then multiplication and division (left to right), then addition and subtraction. Parentheses have the highest precedence and are evaluated first.
Instead of specific numbers, you can put a cell address in a formula: =A1+B1. Then, whenever the values in A1 or B1 change, the result recalculates automatically — that's the real power of formulas.
Important: in the US version of Excel, the decimal separator is a period. One and a half is written 1.5, and a comma separates thousands: 1,500. Many other language versions of Excel use a comma for decimals (1,5), so a file or a tutorial from another country may look different.