Practice by topic / Excel / Fundamentals
Every Excel formula is built from the same basics: cell references, operators and the order Excel calculates them in. Get these right and the rest of Excel stops feeling like guesswork. These 10 exercises build up step by step, starting with understand a relative formula, set up a copyable total, relative reference in a difference.
3 of 10 free · no sign-up needed · graded on the formula you write
C2 uses the formula =A2*B2. If this formula is copied down to row 3, what would it become? Write the formula for C2 as it should be written today.
| A | B | C | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |||
| 2 | 10 | 5 | ? |
A plain reference (no $ signs) shifts when copied. Write today's formula as =A2*B2.
Right — a plain reference like A2 is relative, so copying the formula down one row would shift it to A3*B3 automatically.
Expected result in C2: 50
A2 holds a quantity, B2 holds a unit price, for row 2 of a table that will grow. Write a formula in C2 that will still be correct if copied down to later rows.
| A | B | C | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |||
| 2 | 3 | 8 | ? |
Use plain relative references so the formula adjusts per row: =A2*B2
Good — since both references are relative, copying this down to row 3 becomes A3*B3 automatically.
Expected result in C2: 24
A2 holds budgeted cost, B2 holds actual cost, for row 2. Write a formula in C2 for the variance that would still work correctly if copied to row 3.
| A | B | C | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |||
| 2 | 500 | 420 | ? |
Use relative references: =A2-B2
Right — plain references shift together when copied, so the variance stays correctly aligned per row.
Expected result in C2: 80
B3 and D3 hold two values in row 3. Write a formula in F3 that sums them, in a way that would work if copied down to row 4.
| A | B | C | D | E | F | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ||||||
| 2 | ||||||
| 3 | 6 | 9 | ? |
Solution and instant grading: open it in the practice app (use one of your 20 free picks, or Pro).
Try it in the live spreadsheet →A2 holds a score, B2 holds a max possible score, for row 2. Write a formula in C2 for the percentage that would work if copied down.
| A | B | C | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |||
| 2 | 45 | 50 | ? |
Solution and instant grading: open it in the practice app (use one of your 20 free picks, or Pro).
Try it in the live spreadsheet →A2 holds this row's value, and it needs to be compared against B2, a threshold in the same row. Write a formula in C2 that returns TRUE if A2 exceeds B2.
| A | B | C | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |||
| 2 | 88 | 75 | ? |
Solution and instant grading: open it in the practice app (use one of your 20 free picks, or Pro).
Try it in the live spreadsheet →A2 holds a value for row 2. Write a formula in B2 that doubles it, in a way that would still be correct for row 3 if copied down.
| A | B | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | ||
| 2 | 21 | ? |
Solution and instant grading: open it in the practice app (use one of your 20 free picks, or Pro).
Try it in the live spreadsheet →A2 holds this row's amount, B2 holds last row's running total. Write a formula in C2 for this row's running total that would work if copied down.
| A | B | C | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |||
| 2 | 40 | 100 | ? |
Solution and instant grading: open it in the practice app (use one of your 20 free picks, or Pro).
Try it in the live spreadsheet →A2 holds a cost, B2 holds a markup rate as a decimal, for row 2. Write a formula in C2 for the marked-up price that would work if copied to other rows.
| A | B | C | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | |||
| 2 | 50 | 0.2 | ? |
Solution and instant grading: open it in the practice app (use one of your 20 free picks, or Pro).
Try it in the live spreadsheet →A3 holds this month's value, A2 holds last month's value (the row above). Write a formula in B3 for the month-over-month change.
| A | B | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | ||
| 2 | 200 | |
| 3 | 240 | ? |
Solution and instant grading: open it in the practice app (use one of your 20 free picks, or Pro).
Try it in the live spreadsheet →