Excel Basics

Absolute & Relative cell references:

Cells are referenced using the letter and the number of the column and the row; for example, A1. If you
copy a formula with a cell reference, excel will look at the relative positions. If you want to refer to a
specific cell, you need to use an absolute reference; for example, $A$1.

Basic Functions:
SUM
The SUM function will calculate the total value of a group of cells. You can either refer to the first cell and
the last cell separated by a colon, or separate the cells to be totaled by commas.

FORMULA: = SUM (A1:A5)

MIN
The MIN function will calculate the lowest value (ie: the minimum) in a range of cells.

FORMULA: = MIN (A1:A5)

MAX
The MAX function will calculate the highest value (ie: the maximum) in a range of cells.

FORMULA: = MAX (A1: A5)

AVERAGE
The AVERAGE function will calculate the mean or the average of a group of cells.

FORMULA: = AVERAGE (A1:A5)

COUNT
The COUNT function will count the number of values in a range of cells. It will ignore any text.

FORMULA: = COUNT (A1:A5)

If A1, A2 & A3 contain numbers, but A4 & A5 contain text, this formula will return a value of 3.