Excel Formula Generator
Get the formula you need without memorising syntax. Choose a task, such as looking up a value, summing with a condition or calculating an age, enter your cell references, and copy a ready formula along with a plain explanation of how it works.
- Private by default
- No sign-up
- Free to use
How it works
Not in the list? Describe it
How to use Excel Formula Generator
- Choose what you want to do from the list of tasks.
- Enter your own cell references and values in the fields; the formula updates as you type.
- Pick the argument separator your spreadsheet uses: comma or semicolon.
- Copy the formula and paste it into a cell.
Excel Formula Generator features
More than thirty tasks
Lookups, conditions, conditional sums and counts, text handling, dates and percentages.
Your references filled in
The formula is built with the cells and ranges you enter, ready to paste.
Explained in plain language
Each formula comes with a short description of what every part does.
Comma or semicolon
Switch the argument separator for regional versions of Excel.
Version notes
Shows whether a formula needs Excel 365 or works in every version, and that it runs in Google Sheets.
Optional AI helper
Where the site has an AI model connected, describe an unusual task in words and get a suggested formula.
When to use Excel Formula Generator
- Writing a VLOOKUP or XLOOKUP without looking up the argument order again.
- Building SUMIFS and COUNTIF formulas for a report.
- Calculating ages, deadlines and working days from dates.
- Cleaning imported text with TRIM, PROPER and SUBSTITUTE.
Excel Formula Generator FAQ
Do the formulas work in Google Sheets?
Yes. All functions used here exist in Google Sheets with the same names and arguments. LibreOffice Calc supports nearly all of them as well; the newest functions such as XLOOKUP and FILTER require a recent version.
Why does my Excel show an error when I paste the formula?
The most common reason is the argument separator. Excel versions set to a region that uses a decimal comma, which includes most of Europe, expect semicolons between arguments. Switch the separator setting and copy the formula again. Function names in the formulas are in English; localised Excel versions translate them automatically only when a file is opened, not when text is pasted.
What is the difference between VLOOKUP, XLOOKUP and INDEX/MATCH?
VLOOKUP searches the first column of a table and returns a column to its right, identified by number. INDEX with MATCH does the same job with separate ranges, so it also works to the left and does not break when columns are inserted. XLOOKUP is the modern replacement for both, with a built-in value for “not found”, but it needs Excel 365 or 2021.
How do I write conditions such as “greater than 100”?
In SUMIF, COUNTIF and their relatives, a comparison is written as text: ">100", "<>0", ">=2024-01-01". Type the operator and value into the condition field and the generator adds the quotation marks. To compare with a cell, write the operator in quotes joined to the cell, as in ">"&E1.
What do the dollar signs in some formulas mean?
They fix a reference so that it does not move when the formula is copied. $B$2 always points to B2, while B2 shifts with the formula. Totals and lookup tables are usually fixed; the cell being calculated is not.
How are the formulas produced?
From tested templates that are filled with the references you type. This happens in your browser. Only the optional AI helper, when available, sends your description to an AI service.
Getting comfortable with spreadsheet formulas
Most spreadsheet work rests on a small set of functions. Looking something up in another table, adding up the rows that meet a condition, deciding between two results, taking text apart and calculating with dates cover the great majority of everyday needs. What makes these functions hard is rarely the idea. It is the syntax: which argument comes first, whether the range or the condition leads, when quotation marks are required. A generator removes that friction and lets you concentrate on what you want to calculate.
Reading the explanation that accompanies each formula is worth the few seconds it takes. A formula you understand can be adapted; one you merely pasted has to be regenerated every time the sheet changes. Notice the recurring patterns. Conditions are text in quotation marks. Ranges that should stay put when a formula is copied carry dollar signs. Lookups return an error when nothing matches, and IFERROR turns that error into something presentable.
Two practical habits prevent most formula trouble. First, keep the data in a plain table: one header row, one record per row, no merged cells and no blank rows inside the data. Functions such as SUMIFS and XLOOKUP are designed for that layout. Second, test a new formula on a few rows where you can verify the answer by hand before filling it down a thousand rows.
When a task goes beyond the listed patterns, break it into steps in helper columns rather than writing one enormous formula. Each step is then simple, visible and easy to check, and the final result is a short formula that combines them.