Most people get started with Excel as a place to make lists. The next step up from that is basic calculator functionality followed by more complex models and ultimately basic software programs.
The goal of this module is to give you a solid grounding in the building blocks of Excel models. We will cover the most useful core functions as well as basic best practices. We have a guide covering more of the uses of Excel for SEO which is a great place to get started with tables, pivot tables and other crucial Excel skills. We recommend that you start with the Office Dev Center if you would like to learn the Visual Basic programming language
In this module, we will cover:
The intention is that this module will give you a solid enough grounding that, when combined with the extensive help will allow you to create any formula you need. The vast majority of what you learn in this module will also serve as a good introduction to Google Sheets.
We are going to start with simple calculator-type functions:
You enter a formula in Excel by starting with an equals sign (=). Cells are referenced by their row and column - so C2 is the cell three along and two down.
You can construct mathematical formulae using cell references and the basic mathematical operators: + (addition), - (subtraction), * (multiplication) and / (division).
The formula below adds cells A1 and B1. Modify it to divide A1 by B1.
If A1 and B1 were numbers, how would you divide A1 by B1?
For example, if you were dividing 4 by 2 in excel, you would write = 4 / 2