COUNT Function in Google Sheets: Explained

In this article, you will learn how to use the COUNT function in Google Sheets. The COUNT function is easy to use and helpful when you need to count the number of numeric values in Google Sheets.

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How to use the COUNT function in Google Sheets

1. Type “=COUNT(” or go to “Insert” → “Function” (or directly navigate to the “Functions” icon)  → “Statistical” → “COUNT”.
2. Select a range or an array containing numerical values whose numbers you want to count.
3. Press the “Enter” key.

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The general syntax is as follows:

=COUNT(value1, [value2, …])

Value1: This argument should be a cell, range, or array.

Value2: If you need to select other ranges, you can add as value2, value3, ….

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Note

1. The COUNT function counts the number of all numeric values in a selected range, even when a specific value appears more than once in a data set.
2. The formula counts dates and times as numeric values.
3. The function does not count the number of text values and blanks - they are ignored.
4. Ensure all values you want to count as numerical ones don’t have hidden text such as “‘“, or an apostrophe. For example, if a cell input is “‘7”, it looks like “7”.

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Assume you are a manager in an HR group and want to see how many valid (numerical) answers you get for a survey on a newly introduced communication tool. As you can see, the formula returns eight because, out of ten survey results, two results are “N/A”, text values which this formula doesn’t count.

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What is the difference between the COUNT and COUNTA functions in Google Sheets?

COUNTA stands for “count all”.The difference is that the COUNTA counts everything, including numbers, texts, dates, and times whereas COUNT counts only numeric values, including dates and times. They are in common that they don’t count the number of blank cells.

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What are the other formulas related to mathematics and statistics

If you don’t get the solution you are looking for in this article, or you have further questions related to mathematics or statistics, you may find the answers in the following articles.

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Go to the following articles to learn basic formulas in Google Sheets.

How to Do Math in Google Sheets for Beginners

ADD Function in Google Sheets: Explained

MINUS Function in Google Sheets: Explained

DIVIDE Function in Google Sheets: Explained

MULTIPLY Function in Google Sheets: Explained

PRODUCT Function in Google Sheets: Explained

How to Use SUM Function in Google Sheets

How to Use SUMPRODUCT Formula in Google Sheets

How to Use MAX Function in Google Sheets

How to Use MIN Function in Google Sheets

How to Use MEDIAN Function in Google Sheets

How to Use AVERAGE Formula in Google Sheets

How to Use MODE Function in Google Sheets

MOD Function in Google Sheets: Explained

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Navigate to the pages below to learn how to sum, count, or average numbers with a condition or multiple conditions. 

How to Use SUMIF Function in Google Sheets - sum up the numbers that meet a criterion

SUMIFS Function in Google Sheets: Explained - sum up the numbers that meet multiple criteria

How to Use COUNTIF Function in Google Sheets - count the number of cells that meet a requirement

How to Use COUNTIFS function in Google Sheets - count the number of cells that meet multiple requirements

AVERAGEIF Function in Google Sheets: Explained - average the figures that meet a standard

AVERAGEIFS Function in Google Sheets: Explained - average the figures that meet multiple standards

AVERAGE.WEIGHTED Function in Google Sheets: Explained - use this formula to calculate the weighted average

MAXIFS Function in Google Sheets: Explained - seek for the maximum value that meets specific criteria

MINIFS Function in Google Sheets: Explained - seek for the minimum value that meets specific criteria

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Visit the following post if you are interested in learning how to count the number of specific cells.

COUNTA Function in Google Sheets: Explained - count the number of cells incorporating all types of values containing text and date, except for blank ones

COUNTBLANK Function in Google Sheets: Explained - count the number of blank cells

COUNTUNIQUE Function in Google Sheets: Explained - count the number of unique cells

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You can learn about other Google Sheets formulas and tips that are not mentioned here on this page: LiveFlow‘s How to Guides