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Excel is an incredibly versatile tool, and one of its many useful features is its ability to calculate a running total, also known as a cumulative sum. Calculating a running total can be handy in several scenarios, whether you're tallying up your expenses for the month or tracking your company's sales over a given period. Note that using well-designed templates from ExcelBundle can greatly simplify this task and boost your productivity!
Excel facilitates running total calculations through functions, specifically the SUM function. To get started with calculating a running total, you'll need two essential components: a column that holds the individual numbers you're adding up (for example, daily sales), and a free column where you'll calculate your running total.
Here are the detailed steps you'll need to follow.
Step 1: Start Excel and open the worksheet with the data from which you want to calculate a running total.
Step 2: Assuming that Column A has the numbers that are being added up (say, daily sales revenue figures), find a free column where you can calculate the running total. It could be Column B.
Step 3: Click on the first cell of this free column (B1). In this cell, you should insert the formula =SUM($A$1:A1). Here, $A$1 refers to the first piece of data in your list, and A1 is a relative reference that changes as you extend the formula down the line.
Step 4: Press Enter once you've input the formula, and the first cell should now display the same number that is written in the respective A column cell.
Step 5: Now, click on the first cell in which you typed the formula again, and move your mouse cursor to the small square at the bottom right of the cell. Once your cursor changes to a thin black cross, left-click and drag the cursor down the cells in Column B. This action will copy the formula into the rest of the cells.
As a result, each cell in column B will now represent the running total as you progress down the list. Small, but accurate!
While this is the standard way to calculate a running total in Excel, you can modify the range according to your specific situation. For example, if your data starts in the second row instead of the first (maybe you have a header in the first row), you just need to adjust the formula to account for this. In this case, the formula would change to =SUM($A$2:A2).
Remember that ExcelBundle offers templates that already contain this type of formula setup, reducing the time needed to create them from scratch, especially for more complex spreadsheets.
Running totals are an effective way to accumulate totals over a period, and Excel's powerful features make the process fast and straightforward. Whether you're using Excel for personal budgeting or tracking business revenue, understanding how to calculate a running total is a valuable skill. And with ExcelBundle templates on your side, you're already one step closer to becoming an Excel whizz!
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