The Easiest Way To Calculate Running Totals In Excel
The Easiest Way To Calculate Running Totals In Excel @Brain Up
How to create a running total in Excel
Start with =SUM. Click on the cell where you want your running total to begin. Next, select the SUM function on that cell. ...
Create a running total formula. You must use the dollar sign in this formula, even if the numbers you're tallying are not dollar amounts.
5 Easy Ways to Calculate Running Total in Excel (Cumulative Sum)
Running total (also called cumulative sum) is quite commonly used in many situations. It’s a metric that tells you what’s the sum of the values so far.
For example, if you have the monthly sales data, then a running total would tell you how much sales have been done till a specific day from the first day of the month.
There are also some other situations where running total is often used, such as calculating your cash balance in your bank statements/ledger, counting calories in your meal plan, etc.
In Microsoft Excel, there are multiple different ways to calculate running totals.
The method you choose would also depend on how your data is structured.
For example, if you have simple tabular data then you can use a simple SUM formula, but if you have an Excel table, then it’s best to use structured references. You can also use Power Query to do this.
In this tutorial, I’m going to cover all these different methods to calculate running totals in Excel.
So let’s get started!
Calculating Running Total with Tabular Data
If you have tabular data (i.e., a table in Excel which is not converted into an Excel table), you can use some simple formulas to calculate the running totals.
Using the Addition Operator
Suppose you have date-wise sales data and you want to calculate the running total in column C.
Below are the steps to do this.
Step 1 – In cell C2, which is the first cell where you want the running total, enter=B2
This will simply get the same sale values in cell B2.
Step 2 – In cell C3, enter the below formula:
Step 3 – Apply the formula to the entire column. You can use the Fill handle to select and drag it, or simply and copy-paste the cell C3 to all the remaining cells (which would automatically adjust the reference and give the right result).
=C2+B3
Using SUM with Partially Locked Cell Reference
Below is the SUM formula that will give you the running total.
=SUM($B$2:B2)
Calculating Running Total in Excel Table
When working with tabular data in Excel it’s a good idea to convert it into an Excel table. It makes it a lot easier to manage the data and also allows makes it easy to use tools such as Power Query and Power Pivot.
Working the Excel tables comes with benefits such as structured references (which makes it really easy to refer to the data in the table and use it in formulas), and automatic adjustment of references in case you add or delete data from the table.
While you can still use the above formula that I have shown you in an Excel table, let me show you some better methods to do this.
Suppose you have an Excel table as shown below and you want to calculate the running total in column C.
Below is the formula that will do this:
=SUM(SalesData[[#Headers],[Sale]]:[@Sale])
Below are the steps to do this:
In cell C2, enter =SUM(
Select cell B1, which is the header of the column that has the sale value. You can use the mouse or use the arrow keys. You will notice that Excel automatically enters the structured reference for that cell
Add a : (colon symbol)
Select cell B2. Excel would again automatically insert the structured reference for the cell
Close the bracket and hit enter
Calculating Running Total Using Power Query
Below are the steps to do this:
Select any cell in the Excel table
Click on DataClick the Data tab
In the Get & Transform tab, click on the from Table/Range icon. This will open the table in the Power Query editor
[Optional] In case your Date column is not already sorted, click on the filter icon in the Date column, and then click on Sort ascending
Click the Add Column tab in the Power Query editor
In the General group, click on the Index Column dropdown (do not click on the Index Column icon, but on the small black tilted arrow right next to it to show more options)
Click on the ‘From 1’ option. Doing this will add a new index column that would start from one and enter numbers incrementing by 1 in the entire column
lick on the ‘Custom Column’ icon (which is also in the Add Column tab)Click on Custom Column
In the custom column dialog box that opens up, enter a name for the new column. in this example, I will use the name ‘Running Total’
In the Custom column formula field, enter the below formula: List.Sum(List.Range(#”Added Index”[Sale],0,[Index]))
Make sure there’s a checkbox at the bottom of the dialog box that says – ‘No syntax errors have been detected’
Click OK. This would add a new running total column
Remove the Index Column
calculate running totel running totals calculate
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