Top 25 Excel Formulas to Learn in 2026

In Excel, formulas are one of the most important feature that allows you to perform simple to most complex calculations. Below is the list of the top 25 Excel formulas that you can learn and use to become a master of data analysis and calculations.

Top 25 Excel Formulas & Functions.xlsx — Excel
B I U ☰ ≡ 🪣 A ⊞ ⧉ ↕ ▼
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1 # Formula / Function What It Does Example Difficulty
2 1 SUM Adds up a range of numbers =SUM(A1:A10) Beginner
3 2 AVERAGE Calculates the mean of a range of numbers =AVERAGE(B2:B20) Beginner
4 3 COUNT Counts cells that contain numbers =COUNT(A1:A50) Beginner
5 4 COUNTA Counts all non-empty cells (numbers, text, etc.) =COUNTA(A1:A50) Beginner
6 5 MAX Returns the largest value in a range =MAX(C1:C100) Beginner
7 6 MIN Returns the smallest value in a range =MIN(C1:C100) Beginner
8 7 IF Returns one value if TRUE, another if FALSE. =IF(A1>100,"High","Low") Beginner
9 8 CONCATENATE / & Joins two or more text strings together =A1&" "&B1 Beginner
10 9 LEFT Extracts characters from the left side of a text string =LEFT(A1,3) Beginner
11 10 RIGHT Extracts characters from the right side of a text string =RIGHT(A1,4) Beginner
12 11 LEN Returns the number of characters in a text string =LEN(A1) Beginner
13 12 TRIM Removes extra spaces from text, leaving single spaces between words =TRIM(A1) Beginner
14 13 VLOOKUP Searches for a value in the first column and returns a value from a specified column =VLOOKUP(A1,Sheet2!A:D,3,FALSE) Intermediate
15 14 HLOOKUP Searches for a value in the first row and returns a value from a specified row =HLOOKUP("Sales",A1:Z5,3,FALSE) Intermediate
16 15 INDEX Returns the value at a given row and column intersection in a range =INDEX(A1:D10,3,2) Intermediate
17 16 MATCH Returns the relative position of a value within a range =MATCH("Apple",A1:A20,0) Intermediate
18 17 INDEX + MATCH A powerful combo that looks up values more flexibly than VLOOKUP =INDEX(B1:B10,MATCH(D1,A1:A10,0)) Intermediate
19 18 SUMIF Adds values in a range that meet a specified condition =SUMIF(A1:A10,"Apples",B1:B10) Intermediate
20 19 COUNTIF Counts cells that meet a specified condition =COUNTIF(A1:A20,">100") Intermediate
21 20 IFERROR Returns a custom result when a formula generates an error =IFERROR(A1/B1,"N/A") Intermediate
22 21 TEXT Formats a number as text using a specified format string =TEXT(A1,"$#,##0.00") Intermediate
23 22 XLOOKUP Modern replacement for VLOOKUP; searches a range and returns a corresponding value =XLOOKUP(D1,A1:A10,B1:B10,"Not Found") Advanced
24 23 SUMPRODUCT Multiplies corresponding array values and returns the sum of those products =SUMPRODUCT(A1:A5,B1:B5) Advanced
25 24 Array Formula (CSE) Performs calculations on arrays of data, returning multiple results at once =SUM(IF(A1:A10="Yes",B1:B10)) Advanced
26 25 IFS / Nested IF Evaluates multiple conditions and returns a value for the first TRUE condition =IFS(A1>=90,"A",A1>=80,"B",A1>=70,"C",TRUE,"F") Advanced
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Top 25 Formulas
Examples
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