Today is a quick guide to the most common errors you can have in Microsoft Excel. Surely you have come across one of them in a cell when wanting to carry out any action. Let’s see the best known and why they appear.
Quick Guide to Excel Errors
1. ERROR #### (…)
Among excel errors , this message does not report a problem with the formula, unless it is the result of an operation between dates. The continuous # symbol (hashtag or hashtag , call it what you want) indicates insufficient space in the column.
On the other hand, when the formula includes date/time serial numbers, it indicates that the result is negative , therefore not representable.
2. #NUM ERROR!
This error also identifies a width problem, not physical but logical. The #NUM! manifests itself when using numeric values that exceed Excel’s limit. The current version allows you to enter numbers between -10^308 and 10^308 . For a summary of all limits, I refer you to the official documentation .
3. #REF ERROR!
This error occurs when rows or columns that have references within the formula are deleted. Example: the cell with formula A1 + B1 will return the error #REF! after removing column B.
4. #VALUE ERROR!
When the data types of references in a formula do not match (for example, a number added to a letter), the #VALUE!
Also, the same problem occurs when a function’s arguments do not match the requested data type (for example, num or val ).
5. #DIV/0 ERROR!
This error code is generated when the formula contains a division with a divisor equal to zero. The #DIV/0! it also happens when the divider reference leads to an empty cell. If you have no idea what a divider is, I’ll send you back here to refresh your memory…
6. #NAME ERROR!
The #NAME! is returned when non-existent (or syntactically incorrect) function names or incorrect range names are used . In the latter case, the incorrect name is enclosed in double quotes.
7. #NULL ERROR!
The error code #NULL! occurs when a range is given without the correct separator. Example: COUNT(A1 B1). Here, the colon symbol to indicate the beginning/end of a cell range has been omitted. Or the semicolon symbol to separate two different ranges.
8. ERROR # N/A!
This code is typical of functions that allow you to search for values within an array (for example, VLOOKUP , HORIZONTAL SEARCH, COMPARE, etc.). When the value is not present, the #N/A! error is returned, which means Not/Available.
HOW TO DETECT EXCEL ERRORS
Finally, to understand the meaning of each error, Excel provides a very useful tool, called Error Checker . The tool is activated from the Formulas tab and provides: an immediate explanation of the error, a reference to the documentation, and the ability to highlight the cell causing the problem with the Detect Error button .
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