Basics: Enter A Formula

Here is a simple explanation for beginners for entering a basic formula in Excel:

To use this example, open an Excel workbook with a blank worksheet. In cell A1, enter a static number, such as 25. In cell A2, enter another number, such as 50. Now, make cell A3 your active cell by either clicking in it or using your arrow keys to navigate to it. This is the cell where you will enter your formula to add the two numbers you entered together.

In cell A3, your first step is to enter the equal sign =. This is what you will see:



You can now enter the formula by clicking on A1 with the mouse, then typing the + key and then clicking on A2 with the mouse. The screen and formula bar will look like this:



Now you can complete the formula by either hitting your keyboard's Enter key or by clicking on the green checkmark next to the formula bar. Your result will look like this:



Another quick method for entering and/or calculating is by using the Autosum Tool. Here's the example with the cursor pointing at the Autosum tool:




Be sure you're in the cell where you want your result to be (in this case, in cell A3); click the Autosum Tool once and you will see the range selection border as in the following example:



Click the AutoSum Tool again or press your Enter key on your keyboard and the result will then display. Another fast way is to just simply click the AutoSum tool in two distinct clicks, one right after the other.

The only caution here is, make sure that the AutoSum Tool has selected the correct range to calculate.