Learning Centreby learnwhatyouwant.co.uk
Sign inStart learning
Back to Discover

Technology · Office software

Excel Formulas and Functions: From Basics to Business-Ready

Master the essential formulas and functions in Microsoft Excel to save time, reduce errors, and make confident data-driven decisions. This practical course guides you step-by-step from simple calculations to powerful lookup and logical functions, all with real-world business examples.

540 min12 modulesBeginner friendly
Start this free course

Free to take. This course does not use any Learning Credits.

What you’ll be able to do

By the end of this course, you will be able to build, edit, and troubleshoot a wide range of Excel formulas and functions to analyse data, automate calculations, and produce clear reports for your workplace.

Course outline

A clear route from first principles to practical confidence

  1. 01

    Getting Started with Formulas

    • What is a formula? Cell references and the formula bar
    • Basic arithmetic: addition, subtraction, multiplication, division
    • Using AutoSum for quick totals and averages
    • Copying formulas: relative, absolute, and mixed references
    • Common formula errors and how to fix them
  2. 02

    Essential Math and Statistical Functions

    • SUM, AVERAGE, COUNT, and COUNTA functions
    • MIN, MAX, and LARGE/SMALL for quick insights
    • Rounding numbers: ROUND, ROUNDUP, ROUNDDOWN
    • Using RAND and RANDBETWEEN for simulations
    • Practical exercise: monthly sales summary
  3. 03

    Logical Functions for Decision Making

    • The IF function: simple true/false tests
    • Nested IFs for multiple conditions
    • Combining IF with AND and OR
    • Using the NOT function for reverse logic
    • Real-world example: grading or bonus calculations
  4. 04

    Lookup and Reference Functions

    • VLOOKUP: exact and approximate matches
    • HLOOKUP for horizontal lookups
    • XLOOKUP: the modern, flexible alternative
    • INDEX and MATCH for advanced lookups
    • Handling errors with IFERROR and IFNA
  5. 05

    Text Functions for Data Cleaning

    • Extracting text: LEFT, RIGHT, and MID
    • Finding text: FIND and SEARCH
    • Joining text: CONCATENATE, CONCAT, and TEXTJOIN
    • Changing case: UPPER, LOWER, and PROPER
    • Cleaning imported data: TRIM and CLEAN
  6. 06

    Date and Time Functions

    • TODAY, NOW, and DATE functions
    • Calculating differences: DATEDIF and NETWORKDAYS
    • Adding or subtracting days, months, and years
    • Extracting parts: DAY, MONTH, YEAR, HOUR, MINUTE
    • Practical example: project deadline tracker
  7. 07

    Conditional Sums and Counts

    • SUMIF: adding numbers based on one condition
    • COUNTIF: counting cells that meet a condition
    • SUMIFS and COUNTIFS for multiple criteria
    • Using wildcards (*, ?) in criteria
    • Business case: sales by region or product
  8. 08

    Array Formulas and Dynamic Arrays

    • What are dynamic arrays? Spill ranges explained
    • FILTER: extract data that meets conditions
    • SORT and SORTBY for automatic ordering
    • UNIQUE: remove duplicates and list distinct values
    • SEQUENCE: generate number series quickly
  9. 09

    Financial Functions for Business

    • PMT: calculating loan or mortgage payments
    • FV and PV: future and present value
    • NPV: net present value for project evaluation
    • IRR: internal rate of return for investments
    • Example: comparing two business options
  10. 10

    Error Checking and Formula Auditing

    • Trace Precedents and Trace Dependents
    • Evaluate Formula step by step
    • Using the Watch Window for large models
    • Error types: #DIV/0!, #N/A, #VALUE!, and more
    • Best practices for robust, error-free formulas
  11. 11

    Named Ranges and Table Formulas

    • Creating and managing named ranges
    • Using names in formulas for clarity
    • Working with Excel Tables and structured references
    • Dynamic named ranges with OFFSET and INDEX
    • Practical exercise: building a reusable budget model
  12. 12

    Putting It All Together: A Business Project

    • Planning your workbook: data layout and goals
    • Building a sales dashboard with formulas
    • Using conditional formatting with formulas
    • Creating summary reports with nested functions
    • Final review: tips for ongoing learning and practice