Excel > Formula and name basics > Examples of formulas > Conditional
Create conditional formulas
Show All
Hide All
Testing whether conditions are true or false and making logical comparisons between expressions are common to many tasks. You can use the AND, OR, NOT, and IF function to create conditional formulas.
The IF function uses the following arguments.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Formula with the IF function
logical_test: The condition that you want to check.
value_if_true: The value to return if the condition is true.
value_if_false: The value to return if the condition is false.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What do you want to do?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Create a conditional formula that results in a logical value (TRUE or FALSE)
Create a conditional formula that results in another calculation or in values other than TRUE or FALSE
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Create a conditional formula that results in a logical value (TRUE or FALSE)
To do this task, use the AND, OR, and NOT functions, and operators (operator: A sign or symbol that specifies the type of calculation to perform within an expression. There are mathematical, comparison, logical, and reference operators.).
Example
The example may be easier to understand if you copy it to a blank worksheet.
How to copy an example
Create a blank workbook or worksheet.
Select the example in the Help topic.
Note Do not select the row or column headers.
Selecting an example from Help
Press CTRL+C.
In the worksheet, select cell A1, and press CTRL+V.
To switch between viewing the results and viewing the formulas that return the results, press CTRL+` (grave accent), or on the Formulas tab, in the Formula Auditing group, click the Show Formulas button.
1
2
3
4
A
Data
15
9
8
Sprockets
Widgets
Formula Description (Result)
=AND(A2>A3, A2
=OR(A2>A3, A2
=NOT(A2+A3=24) Is 15 plus 9 not equal to 24? (FALSE)
=NOT(A5="Sprockets") Is A5 not equal to "Sprockets"? (FALSE)
=OR(A5<>"Sprockets",A6 = "Widgets") Is A5 not equal to "Sprockets" or A6 equal to "Widgets"? (TRUE)
Function details
AND
OR
NOT
Top of Page
Create a conditional formula that results in another calculation or in values other than TRUE or FALSE
To do this task, use the IF, AND, and OR functions.
Example
The example may be easier to understand if you copy it to a blank worksheet.
How to copy an example
Create a blank workbook or worksheet.
Select the example in the Help topic.
Note Do not select the row or column headers.
Selecting an example from Help
Press CTRL+C.
In the worksheet, select cell A1, and press CTRL+V.
To switch between viewing the results and viewing the formulas that return the results, press CTRL+` (grave accent), or on the Formulas tab, in the Formula Auditing group, click the Show Formulas button.
1
2
3
4
A
Data
15
9
8
Sprockets
Widgets
Formula Description (Result)
=IF(A2=15, "OK", "Not OK") If the value in cell A2 equals 15, then return "OK". (OK)
=IF(A2<>15, "OK", "Not OK") If the value in cell A2 is not equal to 15, then return "OK". (Not OK)
=IF(NOT(A2<=15), "OK", "Not OK") If the value in cell A2 is not less than or equal to 15, then return "OK". (Not OK)
=IF(A5<>"SPROCKETS", "OK", "Not OK") If the value in cell A5 is not equal to "SPROCKETS", then return "OK". (Not OK)
=IF(AND(A2>A3, A2
=IF(AND(A2<>A3, A2<>A4), "OK", "Not OK") If 15 is not equal to 9 and 15 is not equal to 8, then return "OK". (OK)
=IF(OR(A2>A3, A2
=IF(OR(A5<>"Sprockets", A6<>"Widgets"), "OK", "Not OK") If the value in cell A5 is not equal to "Sprockets" or the value in cell A6 is not equal to "Widgets", then return "OK". (Not OK)
=IF(OR(A2<>A3, A2<>A4), "OK", "Not OK") If 15 is not equal to 9 or 15 is not equal to 8, then return "OK". (OK)
Function details
IF
AND
OR