by The tutorial shows how to do subtraction in Excel by using the minus sign and SUM function. You will also learn how to subtract cells, entire columns, matrices and lists.
Subtraction is one of the four basic arithmetic operations, and every primary school pupil knows that to subtract one number from another you use the minus sign. This good old method works in Excel too. What kind of things can you subtract in your worksheets? Just any things: numbers, percentages, days, months, hours, minutes and seconds. You can even subtract matrices, text strings and lists. Now, let's take a look at how you can do all this.
Subtraction formula in Excel (minus formula)
For the sake of clarity, the SUBTRACT function in Excel does not exist. To perform a simple subtraction operation, you use the minus sign (-).
The basic Excel subtraction formula is as simple as this:
For example, to subtract 10 from 100, write the below equation and get 90 as the result:
=100-10
To enter the formula in your worksheet, do the following:
- In a cell where you want the result to appear, type the equality sign (=).
- Type the first number followed by the minus sign followed by the second number.
- Complete the formula by pressing the Enter key.
Like in math, you can perform more than one arithmetic operation within a single formula.
For example, to subtract a few numbers from 100, type all those numbers separated by a minus sign:
=100-10-20-30
To indicate which part of the formula should be calculated first, use parentheses. For example:
=(100-10)/(80-20)
The screenshot below shows a few more formulas to subtract numbers in Excel:
How to subtract cells in Excel
To subtract one cell from another, you also use the minus formula but supply cell references instead of actual numbers:
For example, to subtract the number in B2 from the number in A2, use this formula:
=A2-B2
You do not necessarily have to type cell references manually, you can quickly add them to the formula by selecting the corresponding cells. Here's how:
- In the cell where you want to output the difference, type the equals sign (=) to begin your formula.
- Click on the cell containing a minuend (a number from which another number is to be subtracted). Its reference will be added to the formula automatically (A2).
- Type a minus sign (-).
- Click on the cell containing a subtrahend (a number to be subtracted) to add its reference to the formula (B2).
- Press the Enter key to complete your formula.
And you will have a result similar to this:
How to subtract multiple cells from one cell in Excel
To subtract multiple cells from the same cell, you can use any of the following methods.
Method 1. Minus sign
Simply type several cell references separated by a minus sign like we did when subtracting multiple numbers.
For example, to subtract cells B2:B6 from B1, construct a formula in this way:
=B1-B2-B3-B4-B5-B6
Method 2. SUM function
To make your formula more compact, add up the subtrahends (B2:B6) using the SUM function, and then subtract the sum from the minuend (B1):
=B1-SUM(B2:B6)
Method 3. Sum negative numbers
As you may remember from a math course, subtracting a negative number is the same as adding it. So, make all the numbers you want to subtract negative (for this, simply type a minus sign before a number), and then use the SUM function to add up the negative numbers:
=SUM(B1:B6)
How to subtract columns in Excel
To subtract 2 columns row-by-row, write a minus formula for the topmost cell, and then drag the fill handle or double-click the plus sign to copy the formula to the entire column.
As an example, let's subtract numbers in column C from the numbers in column B, beginning with row 2:
=B2-C2
Due to the use of relative cell references, the formula will adjust properly for each row:
Subtract the same number from a column of numbers
To subtract one number from a range of cells, enter that number in some cell (F1 in this example), and subtract cell F1 from the first cell in the range:
=B2-$F$1
The key point is to lock the reference for the cell to be subtracted with the $ sign. This creates an absolute cell reference that does not change no matter where the formula is copied. The first reference (B2) is not locked, so it changes for each row.
As the result, in cell C3 you will have the formula =B3-$F$1; in cell C4 the formula will change to =B4-$F$1, and so on:
If the design of your worksheet does not allow for an extra cell to accommodate the number to be subtracted, nothing prevents you from hardcoding it directly in the formula:
=B2-150
How to subtract percentage in Excel
If you want to simply subtract one percentage from another, the already familiar minus formula will work a treat. For example:
=100%-30%
Or, you can enter the percentages in individual cells and subtract those cells:
=A2-B2
If you wish to subtract percentage from a number, i.e. decrease number by percentage, then use this formula:
For example, here's how you can reduce the number in A2 by 30%:
=A2*(1-30%)
Or you can enter the percentage in an individual cell (say, B2) and refer to that cell by using an absolute reference:
=A2*(1-$B$2)
For more information, please see How to calculate percentage in Excel.
How to subtract dates in Excel
The easiest way to subtract dates in Excel is to enter them in individual cells, and subtract one cell from the other:
You can also supply dates directly in your formula with the help of the DATE or DATEVALUE function. For example:
=DATE(2018,2,1)-DATE(2018,1,1)
=DATEVALUE("2/1/2018")-DATEVALUE("1/1/2018")
More information about subtracting dates can be found here:
How to subtract time in Excel
The formula for subtracting time in Excel is built in a similar way:
For example, to get the difference between the times in A2 and B2, use this formula:
=A2-B2
For the result to display correctly, be sure to apply the Time format to the formula cell:
You can achieve the same result by supplying the time values directly in the formula. For Excel to understand the times correctly, use the TIMEVALUE function:
=TIMEVALUE("4:30 PM")-TIMEVALUE("12:00 PM")
For more information about subtracting times, please see:
How to do matrix subtraction in Excel
Suppose you have two sets of values (matrices) and you want to subtract the corresponding elements of the sets like shown in the screenshot below:
Here's how you can do this with a single formula:
- Select a range of empty cells that has the same number of rows and columns as your matrices.
- In the selected range or in the formula bar, type the matrix subtraction formula:
=(A2:C4)-(E2:G4) - Press Ctrl + Shift + Enter to make it an array formula.
The results of the subtraction will appear in the selected range. If you click on any cell in the resulting array and look at the formula bar, you will see that the formula is surrounded by {curly braces}, which is a visual indication of array formulas in Excel:
If you do not like using array formulas in your worksheets, then you can insert a normal subtraction formula in the top leftmost cell and copy in rightwards and downwards to as many cells as your matrices have rows and columns.
In this example, we could put the below formula in C7 and drag it to the next 2 columns and 2 rows:
=A2-C4
Due to the use of relative cell references (without the $ sign), the formula will adjust based on a relative position of the column and row where it is copied:
Subtract text of one cell from another cell
Depending on whether you want to treat the uppercase and lowercase characters as the same or different, use one of the following formulas.
Case-sensitive formula to subtract text
To subtract text of one cell from the text in another cell, use the SUBSTITUTE function to replace the text to be subtracted with an empty string, and then TRIM extra spaces:
With the full text in A2 and substring you want to remove in B2, the formula goes as follows:
=TRIM(SUBSTITUTE(A2,B2,""))
As you can see, the formula works beautifully for subtracting a substring from the beginning and from the end of a string:
If you want to subtract the same text from a range of cells, you can "hard-code" that text in your formula.
As an example, let's remove the word "Apples" from cell A2:
=TRIM(SUBSTITUTE(A2,"Apples",""))
For the formula to work, please be sure to type the text exactly, including the character case.
Case-insensitive formula to subtract text
This formula is based on the same approach - replacing the text to subtract with an empty string. But this time, we will be using the REPLACE function in combination with two other functions that determine where to start and how many characters to replace:
- The SEARCH function returns the position of the first character to subtract within the original string, ignoring text case. This number goes to the start_num argument of the REPLACE function.
- The LEN function finds the length of a substring that should be removed. This number goes to the num_chars argument of REPLACE.
The complete formula looks as follows:
Applied to our sample data set, it takes the following shape:
=TRIM(REPLACE(A2,SEARCH(B2,A2),LEN(B2),""))
Where A2 is the original text and B2 is the substring to be removed.
Subtract one list from another
Supposing, you have two lists of text values in different columns, a smaller list being a subset of a larger list. The question is: How do you remove elements of the smaller list from the larger list?
Mathematically, the task boils down to subtracting the smaller list from the larger list:
Larger list: {"A", "B", "C", "D"}
Smaller list: {"A", "C"}
Result: {"B", "D"}
In terms of Excel, we need to compare two lists for unique values, i.e. find the values that appear only in the larger list. For this, use the formula explained in How to compare two columns for differences:
=IF(COUNTIF($B:$B, $A2)=0, "Unique", "")
Where A2 is the first cells of the larger list and B is the column accommodating the smaller list.
As the result, the unique values in the larger list are labeled accordingly:
And now, you can filter the unique values and copy them wherever you want.
That's how you subtract numbers and cells in Excel. To have a closer look at our examples, please feel free to download our sample workbook below. I thank you for reading and hope to see you on our blog next week!
Practice workbook
Subtraction formula examples (.xlsx file)
107 comments
Hello. Can you tell me the formula if i want to subtract 1gram for each 10gram. For example if i punch in 79 in a cell in another cell it will be 72. And if i punch in 50 it will be 45. Your help would be appreciated thx
Lot of thanks team ablebits.com. This forum is fantastic. Your help is beyond words
Best regards
AK.
good work!
I’m trying to make a formula or command that if there is an actual number imputed in a specific cell then subtract the next actual imputed number from above in the same column. The numbers won’t be put in in the same cells all the time in that column. Example
1 2 3 4
A
B 300
C
D 600. I want cell D2 to take D1 and subtract it from
B1. But the formula needs to know that the 300 could have been in c1 or a1. I Want this to set up over 31 rows
Thank you so much!!
Hi. i'm mic. I have designed a box on a worksheet and includes letters From (A) to (Y) in columns B up to L out of 12 rows. The whole column A is where I input my data entry to receive results in this box. ie Column B has (5) edited bold letters from A to E. Skipping column C, column D has 5 letters from F to J. And skipping column E, column F has 5 letters from K to O. And this continues up to the last letter Y in column J. E.g Capital letter (A) is in column B2:3, letter (B) is in column B4:5, letter (C) is in column B6:7, and this continues up to (E) of column B. And this is also true to all the letters in the given columns. These letters represent the names of items that begin with these letters. And going to the cells of skipped columns, its where I receive the sum of each letter's existence in column A after an input. For example, letter (A) in column B has 2 cells, c2 and c3 in column C, and c3 (which is the down cell) is to give me the sum of A's appearance after its entry in column A. And here, all the down cells of the skipped columns are to give me the sum of each letters appearance in column A, and here I already used the COUNTIF function to do that for me. WHAT I WANT you to do for me is this. Lets say most letters in this box have different sums of entry from column A in their down cells, and in this case letter G has the sum of 6 entries in its down sum cell, yet G is the next entry but has not been entered in columm A since the last 13 entries. After its entry, how can I use letter G's upper cell (column C5) to count 0(zero) whenever G is entered and again start counting from 1 to 100( or more) if a another letter in entered. Or if letter A has the sum of 0(zero) in its down cell(that is column C3) since 36 last entries of other letters in column A, let column C2 (the upper cell) count 36 as its last(or none) entry in column A, and RETURN counting to zero if A is entered. Let the upper cells in the skipped columns of each letter independently count(sum) the number of times they were last entered and RETURN counting from zero when they have been entered in column A. What formula should I use to do this. PLIZ I NEED YOUR HELP. THX.
ON HAND 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
430 20 100 100 200 70 10 10 100 100 100
COVERED COVERED COVERED COVERED ONLY 10 Not Covered Not Covered Not Covered Not Covered Not Covered
the following line shows how the formula needs to put the correct info see below
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
0 0 0 0 60 10 10 100 100 100
hi
Based on my HAND I can cover from week 1 to week 4 and 10 pcs for week 5 and the rest of the week wont cover
Can you please help me to get the correct funtion and formula to use on this task ? pLease help thanks
Hello,
I created a spreadsheet that will subtract my postal charges from the total amount I created in a purchase request. Example: The Purchase request amount is $3,000.00, which populates cell F5. the mailing charges are subtracted for each cell in column G, so in cell G5 I typed $5.22 and then the results are shown in column H, or in this case cell H5, which tells me my remaining balance is $2,994.78. I now want the remaining balances I see for each individual cell in column H to show up in column F so that I don't have to type it in each cell in column F each time I get the balance. For example I want the $2,994.78 I see in cell H5 to now show up in F6. Then I will have the $2,994.78 in F6 subtract the mailing charge in G6 and get the remaining balance in H6, which will then reflect in F7 and so on. Is there a way to make this work?
PLEASE SUGGEST THE FORMULA FOR SUBTRACTION RESTRICTION WITH A NUMBER, SUPPOSE IN A TABLE VARIOUS ROWS FOR SUBTRACTION ARE THERE, THE AMOUNT TO BE SUBTRACTED IF BECOMES MORE THAN A CERTAIN NUMBER, THEN ALSO THE CERTAIN NUMBER ONLY SHOULD BE SUBTRACTED NOT THAT MORE NUMBER.
How to perform subtraction of 3 billion (3,000,000,000) frm 2 Septillion (2,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000)?
It wun give the correct answer as if the 3B has been ignored.
I need help could you teach me how can I take the bonus for 2142worked hours 1500 hours must subtract the remaining hour it cost 10$. can you show me what formula i should use to see the bonus? ASAP thanks
TEXT ME HERE FOR CLASSES
I need a formula in excel that will add and subtract accrued time but not allow total to go over 384?
Dear Sir,
I don't want to put in the value every time I want to subtract one particular number from that cell. I tried placing that number in one cell and click it with =a1-b1 but this when extended using the easy option it selects the next one so I don't get the value. I don't want to put it inside the formula every time, cause this will be entered by someone else, that value they put in should be subtracted from all without making them the use of the formula.
THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT FOR ME
THANK YOU
i have followed this to the letter... just trying to subtract one column from the other.... does not work.
Hi Dana,
You may want to download our sample workbook and see how the formula is implemented there. Hope that will be helpful.
I have a cell with the formula =DATEDIF(G7,C2,"d") to get the number of days since a breeding event for cattle. I would like to be able to have another cell that automatically subtracts that number from 282, changing each day (like a countdown of days left, where 282 is the total days in gestation so I know how many days until they are due).
Thank you!
Lindsay
Hi Lindsay,
How about using the Excel DAYS function instead of the DATEDIF one? If that is okay with you, the formula is as follows:
=282 - DAYS(TODAY(), G7)
Honestly, this is awesome! It was as if i was face-to-face in a classroom with my tutor. This is excel made simple. Thank you so much.
I have value in cell a1 (1801381), I need to multiple that value by 1.05% (1891450), then subtract the value in cell A1 (1801381) from 1891450. What would that formula look like?
subtract function does not exist in excel ???? but you write =c1-c2 let say. too me it looks like a function but it works only once why ?
Hi Bob,
Functions and formulas are a bit different things.
Function is a predefined formula already available in Excel. Functions perform specific calculations based on the specified values, called arguments, or parameters.
For example, Excel provides a built-in function to add up numbers: SUM(number1,[number2],...)
A built-in SUBTRACT function does not exist. But you can make your own subtract formula like =A1-A2
Hi,
I'm currently trying to write a function for a time sheet at work and am having a little bit of trouble. My goal is to alert my boss when a task is close to being due but i've run into a bump thats making me scratch my head a little.
C5= 193 (HOURS ALLOWED ON PROJECT) E5= 183 (HOURS ACCUMULATED)
IF(C5=E5-10,"10 Hours Left")))
Any help would be appreciated. Thanks
Cameron,
It's not really a formula but if you were to type the following, it'll give you results that I think you're looking for:
=IF(E5=183,"10 Hours Left","")
If you need more help on your spreadsheet let me know. Ann
Hi..
I have students list with Marks & Rank and i want to find 1-10 marks how many students and their ranks in Brackets
For Example
1-10 marks
10 students(1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10)Ranks