Excel is an incredibly powerful tool for managing and analyzing data. One often-used functionality is its ability to calculate percentages. In this tutorial, we’ll learn how to use the percentage formula in Excel.
What is the Percentage Formula in Excel?
The percentage formula in Excel is quite straightforward. It’s essentially a division formula. So, if you want to calculate a percentage, you’re simply dividing one number by another.
Calculating Percentage in Excel
Suppose you have two numbers; one is the part (let’s call this ‘A’), and the other is the whole (let’s call this ‘B’). You can calculate the percentage of A with respect to B using the following formula:
=A/B
But we’re not done yet! After typing in this formula, Excel will return the result of the division and not the percentage. To convert this to a percentage, you need to format the cell to display the value as a percentage.
Formatting the Cell to Show Percentage
Here’s how you can format the cell to display the result as a percentage:
- Select the cell you want to format.
- Right-click the selected cell and click on ‘Format Cells’.
- In the ‘Category’ list, click ‘Percentage’.
- Click ‘OK’.
The cell will now display the value as a percentage.
Example
Let’s go through a practical example to understand this better.
Assume you want to calculate what percentage of 200 is 50. To do this:
Cell A1: 200 Cell A2: 50 Cell A3: =A2/A1
Then format Cell A3 to show the result as a percentage by following the steps mentioned above. The resulting value in Cell A3 will be 25%.
Conclusion
Calculating percentages in Excel is a fundamental skill that can help you analyze and present data more effectively. While it might seem somewhat tricky at first, with a little practice, you can master it in no time. Happy calculating!
