The OFFSET formula in Excel is a powerful tool for creating dynamic references within your spreadsheets. Here’s a breakdown of what it does:
Purpose of Offset Formula in Excel
- It takes a starting cell (reference) as input and then lets you specify how many rows and columns you want to move (offset) from that cell.
- Based on this offset, it returns a reference to a new cell or range of cells.
Breakdown of Offset Formula:
=OFFSET(reference, rows, cols, [height], [width])
- reference: This is the starting cell or range of cells you want to offset from.
- rows: This is a number specifying how many rows you want to move. Positive numbers move down, negative numbers move up.
- cols: This is a number specifying how many columns you want to move. Positive numbers move right, negative numbers move left.
- [height] (optional): This specifies the height (number of rows) of the returned range. If omitted, it defaults to the height of the reference cell/range.
- [width] (optional): This specifies the width (number of columns) of the returned range. If omitted, it defaults to the width of the reference cell/range.
Offset Formula Example
Let’s say you have data in cells A1:A10 and you want to reference the value in cell A5 but two rows down. You can use the formula:
=OFFSET(A1, 4, 0) (This moves 4 rows down (positive) and 0 columns over)
This formula would return the value in cell A9.
Tutorial Video
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[MBA in Finance]
Nazim Khan is an expert in Microsoft Excel. He teaches people how to use it better. He has been doing this for more than ten years. He is running this website (TechGuruPlus.com) and a YouTube channel called "Business Excel" since 2016. He shares useful tips from his own experiences to help others improve their Excel skills and careers.
