Functions vs. Formulas in Microsoft Excel: What’s the Difference?

In Excel, formulae and functions are often used interchangeably. Interestingly, these two are distinct, and even Excel users are ignorant of this. The distinctions between Excel functions and formulas are covered in this article.

What are Excel Formulas?

A formula in Excel is a mathematical equation, as its name indicates. It is constructed from values or numerical information we put into the cells. Direct values or cell references may be used to generate a formula. All formulae start with the letter = and then add the values from the equation.

The equal sign must come first in formulas. You would also need to add the parameters to compute and produce the final expressions. When you enter a formula, it will appear in the formula bar at the top of the page.

What are Excel Functions?

In Excel, functions are preset formulae that are run using certain values known as arguments. These numbers are organized and follow a certain order, like an Excel macro.

We are unable to change the contents of functions, unlike formulae. They carry out several more sophisticated computations in addition to simple ones like SUM or AVERAGE. Functions are accessible for selection, usage, and insertion into newly formed formulae. They are shown in capital letters.

Excel Formula vs. Function: What's the Difference?

In theory, a function might be referred to as a formula. The sole distinction is that we cannot build functions; instead, a function is a preset formula. Formulas containing functions may be used.

Therefore, inserting a function into a formula that you construct is the simplest method to identify a function from a formula in Excel.

Function: Easily put into a formula and predefined by Excel.

Formula: Adaptable and user-defined; may be used with or without a function.

The software predefines the functions derived from mathematical formulae but cannot be changed.

Both sites make it easy to do mathematical operations starting with the = sign. But it has a distinct structure. Formulae may be created by adding numbers and designating the mathematical operation (+,-,*,/).

Parentheses are used to create functions from arguments. A real-world example would be:

A formula example is = A1 + B1.

Function illustration: =SUM (A1:B1)

Excel offers guidance on how to enter the arguments accurately. If you type any sequence incorrectly, a warning appears and provides choices to fix it.