10 Excel Functions for Data Analysis

Excel functions help professionals across industries work with data efficiently and organizedly. Learning to leverage powerful Excel functions can enhance your existing skill set and expand your professional opportunities. 

Explore the basics of Excel functions, including what they are, 10 popular functions, and how to continue learning Excel fundamentals.

Read more: What Is Excel? Formulas, Functions, and More

What are Excel functions?

Excel functions are automatic (pre-defined) formulas available on the Microsoft Excel platform. These functions perform calculations using your data by performing a sequence of steps to process and analyze your information in a specific way. These functions range from simple arithmetic operations to complex financial or statistical calculations, making Excel a versatile tool in many industries. 

One of the benefits of Excel functions is that they make statistical analysis more approachable for people without mathematical backgrounds, and they speed up tasks within the data analysis pipeline. Many companies rely on Excel functions for different tasks, and by learning how to leverage the power of Excel functions, you can streamline your processes and open yourself to more advanced statistical analysis.

Read more: Google Sheets vs. Excel: What’s the Difference?

Pros and cons of Excel functions

Leveraging advanced Excel capabilities can make it easier to work with data and support productivity. When using Excel functions, you should know the best practices to optimize function capabilities. Some benefits and possible limitations to keep in mind include:

Pros

• Perform efficient data analysis: Excel functions can dramatically reduce the time and effort required for calculations, allowing you to perform more advanced analysis. 

• Improve accuracy: By using predefined functions, you can improve the accuracy of your analysis while incorporating error detection steps. This helps to reduce your risk of errors and ensures more reliable data analysis. You can customize certain Excel functions, such as the IFERROR function, to print an error message when something goes wrong.

• Access versatile options: You can choose from hundreds of functions, each with a specific purpose. Depending on your profession, you can select functions that best fit your purpose.

• Automate tasks: You can combine and nest functions to automate routine tasks, making it easier to process large datasets and perform repetitive operations. Once you have a series of steps that work, you can record a macro with Macro Recorder in Excel, which is a “saved” version of your steps you can run on whichever pieces of data you like.

Read more: 7 Data Analysis Software Applications You Need to Know

Cons

• Limited function capabilities: Whether you use a pre-defined function or you define your own, you will not be able to change the environment within Microsoft Excel, such as changing another cell value, inserting or deleting cells, or adding names to your workbook.

• Learning curve: Mastering Excel functions can be challenging for beginners, with some advanced functions requiring a good understanding of their syntax and usage.

• Limited error checking: While Excel provides error messages, finding and correcting errors in function formulas requires understanding the basics of specific processes to identify where something went wrong accurately.

How do data analysts use Excel functions?

Data analysts use Excel functions to streamline their workflow and enhance their analytical capabilities. Excel has powerful functions that many professionals find helpful for data analytics, including those that organize data, perform statistical analysis, generate reports, and derive insights from data sets. 

Data analysts can choose between many Excel functions depending on their needs. For example, data analysts who need to work with time data might use time and date functions such as DATE (returns a serial number of dates) and DAYS (returns the number of days between two dates). In contrast, financial data analysts might use functions such as ACCRINT (returns accrued interest) or DB (returns depreciation of an asset’s value).

Read more: What Does a Data Analyst Do? Your Career Guide

10 top Excel functions in data analysis

While Excel has hundreds of built-in functions, you might gravitate to a few common ones more often than others. Some top Excel functions that can help you efficiently clean and manipulate your data include the following.

Read more: How to Earn a Microsoft Excel Certification (+ Why You Should)

1. EXACT

The EXACT function in Excel compares two strings of text to determine if they are identical. This function is case-sensitive, and it can tell the difference between uppercase and lowercase letters. This makes it an excellent function for data validation, especially when precision is essential.

This function returns TRUE if the strings are identical, and it returns FALSE if not. In financial analysis, this function validates that input values are within a particular format and helps improve the accuracy of user entries. 

2. TRIM

The TRIM function cleans data in Excel by leaving one space between words while removing all other spaces from the text. This function can automate the data formatting and cleaning process if you receive a messy text input file.

3. SUMPRODUCT

SUMPRODUCT multiplies values with the same location across multiple arrays and outputs the sum of these products. While multiplication is the standard function, you can alter the function to perform other operations like addition, subtraction, and division.

This function is handy when calculating a weighted average or manipulating large arrays quickly. For example, a business owner might use SUMPRODUCT to calculate total sales over a certain period of time by combining and summing data from multiple arrays.

4. REPLACE

The REPLACE function allows you to replace part of a text string (with a specified number of characters) with another text string. You can use this function to modify and clean data, such as updating numbers, correcting data entries, or standardizing text formats across datasets. 

5. SUBSTITUTE

SUBSTITUTE is similar to the REPLACE function, except it replaces specific text in a given string. It offers more precise control than REPLACE by targeting specific text rather than a character count position. 

This function might be helpful in correcting common data entry errors that require replacing one character set with another. For example, you could replace abbreviations with full terms or remove unwanted characters or words from data points.

6. Min and Max

MIN and MAX functions are simple statistical functions that find the lowest and highest values in a specified location range, respectively. It can help you quickly find any outliers in your data, understand the spread of your values, and begin to summarize your data set.

7. Match

The MATCH function provides position information of a specific piece of data within a larger table. If you need the exact location of your data within a range of cells, this function quickly finds the location for you. You might use it with the INDEX function to retrieve specific data points based on certain criteria. 

8. IfError

The IFERROR function catches and handles errors in formulas, returning a custom message if an error is detected (and a standard function result when things work correctly). This function helps you improve the accuracy of your results and catch any mistakes in your functions before you reach the later stages of your analysis process.

9. XLookup

XLOOKUP is a newer solution to finding data within a table compared to older functions like VLOOKUP and HLOOKUP. The XLOOKUP function can return data from anywhere in your rows and columns based on specific criteria, such as finding the price of a product by its product number. If no match comes up, it returns the closest match.

10. RANG.AVG

The RANK.AVG function is a newer version of the RANK function. It sorts numbers in ascending or descending order and provides you with the position information of a specific value. If several values have equivalent ranks, the function gives the average rank.

Boost your skills with Excel

Mastering Excel is a valuable skill for many types of tasks. Whether for your benefit or to streamline your professional practices, you can take several pathways to elevate your Excel skills.

• Coursework: Enroll in structured coursework through a university or an online education platform. You can choose courses suited to your skill level, including basic and advanced topics. 

• Boot camp: Excel boot camps are intensive training programs designed to help you quickly enhance your skills.

• Online tutorial: You can follow an online tutorial for a shorter introduction to a specific topic, allowing you to learn relevant topics quickly.

• Certification: You can pursue a certification in Excel, such as the Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) Excel certification. Gaining credentials also validates your skills in a structured format and provides you with something concrete to put on your resume, representing your Excel skills.

Learn Microsoft Excel with Coursera 

Microsoft Excel is an excellent tool for managing data, performing complex functions, and creating data visualizations. Enhance your knowledge of Excel with courses and programs available on Coursera. The Microsoft 365 Fundamental Specialization takes you through a series of courses to teach you how to make the most of the Microsoft environment. In the Microsoft Excel section, you will learn how to work with formulas and functions, create professional spreadsheets, and manage complex data sets effectively. You can also develop your Excel skills with the Excel Basics for Data Analysis, a beginner-friendly course from IBM.