How to multiply two numbers in Excel

Words to Math: Multiplication When talking about multiplication, you will most likely see the terms “times”, “multiplied by”, “product of”, and “by a factor of”.

To type the Times or Multiplication symbol on the Windows keyboard, press down the Alt key and type 0215 using the numeric keypad, then release the Alt key. On the Mac, press Option + 00D7 on your keyboard.

Find it by clicking the Insert tab, then clicking the Symbol button. From the menu, select the “x,” which has a pop-up “Multiplication Sign” reminder. To insert the multiplication symbol in Word and Excel, just position your cursor where you want it to be.

The reason is quite ‘technical’: According to Microsoft, the reason for this wrong result is the so-called binary format which the numbers are converted to for calculation (more info on Wikipedia). In order to avoid an endless number, Excel would round it at the end.

1. In a cell, type “=”
2. Click in the cell that contains the first number you want to multiply.
3. Type “*”.
4. Click the second cell you want to multiply.
5. Press Enter.
6. Set up a column of numbers you want to multiply, and then put the constant in another cell.

• Worksheet – rectangular grid of rows (numbers) and columns (letters)
• Cell – intersection of row and column.
• Cell reference – unique address, coordinates of the intersection of a column and row (B7)
• Gridlines – horizontal and vertical lines.

You enter three types of data in cells: labels, values, and formulas.

• Labels (text) are descriptive pieces of information, such as names, months, or other identifying statistics, and they usually include alphabetic characters.
• Values (numbers) are generally raw numbers or dates.

The three most common general uses for spreadsheet software are to create budgets, produce graphs and charts, and for storing and sorting data. Within business spreadsheet software is used to forecast future performance, calculate tax, completing basic payroll, producing charts and calculating revenues.

The most common reason to use spreadsheets is to store and organize data, like revenue, payroll and accounting information. Spreadsheets allow the user to make calculations with this data and to produce graphs and charts.

Function Categorization

• Arithmetic functions : offer basic tools to process numerical data.
• Statistical functions: have analysis tools, averaging tools.
• Date functions: process and convert dates.
• Logic functions: process logic data (AND, OR, etc.).
• Financial functions: process monetary data.