The COUNT function counts the number of cells that contain numbers in a range. This guide explains how COUNT works and includes practical examples you can use immediately.
WHAT THE COUNT FUNCTION DOES
COUNT tallies how many cells in a range contain numeric values. It automatically ignores empty cells, text entries, and error values, making it ideal for verifying data completeness or getting the denominator for average calculations.
WHEN TO USE COUNT
Use COUNT when you want to:
- Count how many entries contain numerical data
- Verify data completeness in a dataset
- Get the count for calculating averages
- Exclude text or empty cells from your count
FORMULA SYNTAX
COUNT(value1, [value2], ...)| Argument | Description |
|---|---|
value1 | The first cell, range, or value to count |
value2 | Additional cells, ranges, or values (optional) |
EXAMPLE 1: COUNT COMPLETED TEST SCORES
We want to count how many students have submitted test scores.
| A | B | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Student | Score |
| 2 | Alice | 85 |
| 3 | Bob | 92 |
| 4 | Carol | |
| 5 | David | 78 |
| 6 | Eve | Absent |
=COUNT(B2:B6)Result: 3 (only rows 2, 3, and 5 contain numbers)
Need help applying this? Try this in Numstro Builder
EXAMPLE 2: COUNT SALES DATA ACROSS MULTIPLE RANGES
We want to count how many sales figures we have across Q1 and Q2.
| A | B | C | D | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jan | Feb | Apr | May |
| 2 | 5000 | 6000 | 5500 |
=COUNT(A2:B2, C2:D2)Result: 3 (Jan, Feb, and Apr have numbers; May is empty)
Need help applying this? Try this in Numstro Builder
COMMON MISTAKES & EDGE CASES
- COUNT only counts cells with numbers — use COUNTA to count all non-empty cells
- Text that looks like numbers (like "123") won't be counted
- Date and time values are counted since they're stored as numbers
- Boolean values (TRUE/FALSE) are counted as numbers
- Error values like #DIV/0! are not counted
RELATED FUNCTIONS
FURTHER READING
Official Microsoft documentation:
COUNT — Microsoft Support