Count, Counta, & Mode

The Count and Counta functions are functions that are often overlooked due to their apparent simplicity.  However, these functions can be used intelligently in a worksheet environment.

When using Excel you may notice that if you enter a letter as part of your data, the entry that includes this letter will be aligned to the left of the cell rather than to the right.  This is helpful in identifying accidental insertions of letters into an otherwise purely numerical worksheet.  However, if the column is small, the left alignment is not nearly as noticeable.  

The count function can be useful in identifying cells in which letters have been added.  This function will count the number of cells that have numerical data.  You can than compare this number to the number of cells in your range.  If the two numbers do not correspond, this indicates some of your cells contain information other that numbers.

Skill Builder:  Using the Count Function

1.	Click	In the Cell where you want your count to appear.

2.	Type 	The function notation 
		=count(range)  
		
		For instance, if your range was from F5-H9, you would 
		enter 
		=count(F5:H9)

3.  	Hit	Enter.  The number of pure numerical entries will 
		appear.  You can then compare this with the number 
		of cells in your range.  

In different situations, you may want to use the companion to the count function.  This function is called the counta function.  This function will not only count the number of numerical entries, but will also count the total entries in a range, numerical or otherwise.  

Skill Builder:  Using the Counta Function

1.	Click	In the Cell where you want your counta value to appear.

2.	Type 	The function notation 
		=counta(range)

3.  	Hit	Enter.  The number of entries in the range will appear.  

Another function you may want to consider moving is the mode function.  This function is useful when dealing with a large amount of data.  The mode function will identify the number that is used most often within a particular range. 

Skill Builder:  Using the Mode Function

1.	Click	In the Cell where you want your mode value to appear.

2.	Type 	The function notation 
		=mode(range)

3.  	Hit	Enter.  The number that is used most often in the 
		given range, or the mode, will appear.

If there is a tie in the mode, Excel will show first number it finds as the mode.  For instance, if both the numbers 83 and 86 are found to be used the most frequently, Excel may show either one of these as the mode, depending on the order in which the data is sorted, and which number Excel finds first.