Find all errors in excel

How to Find Errors (#VALUE, #NAME, etc.) in Excel

This tutorial demonstrates how to find errors in Excel.

Find Errors

In Excel, you may have the need to find errors and select them in order to delete or change their cells’ contents. This can be time-consuming to do manually if there are too many cells with errors. Consider the example pictured below, a list of values in Column B that includes various errors.

To select cells with different kinds of errors (for this example, cells B3, B4, B7, and B10) at once, follow these steps:

1. In the Ribbon, go to Home > Find & Select > Go To Special.

1. In the Go To Special window, select Formulas, check Errors (all the other options should be unchecked), and click OK.

As a result, all cells that contain errors in a single sheet are selected.

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How to find an error in the Excel table according to the formula?

To save time on visual analysis of large tables in order to identify errors, it is more rationally to apply formulas for determining its location. For example, the information about the localization of the first error, that occurred relative to the rows and columns of the sheet, would be very useful.

Searching of errors in Excel by the formula

To determine of position an error location in a table with big amount of rows and columns, we recommend to take advantage of the special formula. For example we show the formula, that can easily works with large ranges of cells, within A1:Z100.

To determining to the localization of the first error on the sheet concerning of the rows, you should use to the following:

This should be executed in an array, so after entering it, you need to press to the combination of hot keys: CTRL + SHIFT + Enter. If everything is done correctly, in the formula line will be appear the curly brackets appear, as you can see in the picture.

The table with large amount of data contains to errors, the first of which is in the range of the third line of the sheet 3:3.

How to get the address of the cell with an error?

Based on the result of calculating this formula you can create to another formula that does not just define to a row or a column, but will indicate the immediate address of the error on the Excel sheet. To solve this problem below (in the cell AB 3), you need to enter to another:

This should also be executed in the array, so after entering it again, you need to press CTRL + SHIFT + Enter to confirm. The result of calculating of the local address of the cell that contains the first error in the table:

The principle of the search for error:

In the first argument of the ADDRESS function you need to specify to the line number that must be returned in the cell address, containing to the result of the action of the whole formula. The line number is defined by the previous formula and is the number 3. Therefore we only refer to the cell AB2 with the first formula. Next, using the function INDIRECT, the reference is made to the range that must be found in accordance with the location of the errors.

It is not necessary to perform to the searching on the whole table, thus loading to the processor of the computer and unnecessarily taking away the computational resources of the Excel program. We are only interested in the third line.

With helping of the ISERROR function, each of the cell in the A3:Z3 range is checked for errors. On the basis of the results obtained in an array, is created in the program memory of the logical values TRUE and FALSE. The next COLUMN function returns to the program memory to the second array of the column numbers with the numbers of elements, which corresponding to the number of columns in the range A3:Z3.

Thanks to the IF function in the first array, the logical value TRUE is replaced by the corresponding numeric value from the second array. After that, the MIN function selects the smallest numerical value of the first array, which corresponds to the number of the column, containing to the first error. Since we calculated to the row and column numbers, the calculation of the formula with the ADDRESS function is completed. It already returns by the text value for the finished cell address, which are based on the column number and the string specified in its arguments.

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Detect errors in formulas

Formulas can sometimes result in error values in addition to returning unintended results. The following are some tools that you can use to find and investigate the causes of these errors and determine solutions.

Note: This topic contains techniques that can help you correct formula errors. It is not an exhaustive list of methods for correcting every possible formula error. For help on specific errors, you can search for questions like yours in the Excel Community Forum, or post one of your own.

Learn how to enter a simple formula

Formulas are equations that perform calculations on values in your worksheet. A formula starts with an equal sign (=). For example, the following formula adds 3 to 1.

A formula can also contain any or all of the following: functions, references, operators, and constants.

Parts of a formula

Functions: included with Excel, functions are engineered formulas that carry out specific calculations. For example, the PI() function returns the value of pi: 3.142.

References: refer to individual cells or ranges of cells. A2 returns the value in cell A2.

Constants: numbers or text values entered directly into a formula, such as 2.

Operators: The ^ (caret) operator raises a number to a power, and the * (asterisk) operator multiplies. Use + and – add and subtract values, and / to divide.

Note: Some functions require what are referred to as arguments. Arguments are the values that certain functions use to perform their calculations. When required, arguments are placed between the function’s parentheses (). The PI function does not require any arguments, which is why it’s blank. Some functions require one or more arguments, and can leave room for additional arguments. You need to use a comma to separate arguments, or a semi-colon (;) depending on your location settings.

The SUM function for example, requires only one argument, but can accommodate 255 total arguments.

=SUM(A1:A10) is an example of a single argument.

=SUM(A1:A10, C1:C10) is an example of multiple arguments.

The following table summarizes some of the most common errors that a user can make when entering a formula, and explains how to correct them.

Make sure that you

Start every function with the equal sign (=)

If you omit the equal sign, what you type may be displayed as text or as a date. For example, if you type SUM(A1:A10), Excel displays the text string SUM(A1:A10) and does not perform the calculation. If you type 11/2, Excel displays the date 2-Nov (assuming the cell format is General) instead of dividing 11 by 2.

Match all open and closing parentheses

Make sure that all parentheses are part of a matching pair (opening and closing). When you use a function in a formula, it is important for each parenthesis to be in its correct position for the function to work correctly. For example, the formula =IF(B5 =IF(B5 Use a colon to indicate a range

When you refer to a range of cells, use a colon (:) to separate the reference to the first cell in the range and the reference to the last cell in the range. For example, =SUM(A1:A5), not =SUM(A1 A5), which would return a #NULL! Error.

Enter all required arguments

Some functions have required arguments. Also, make sure that you have not entered too many arguments.

Enter the correct type of arguments

Some functions, such as SUM, require numerical arguments. Other functions, such as REPLACE, require a text value for at least one of their arguments. If you use the wrong type of data as an argument, Excel may return unexpected results or display an error.

Nest no more than 64 functions

You can enter, or nest, no more than 64 levels of functions within a function.

Enclose other sheet names in single quotation marks

If a formula refers to values or cells on other worksheets or workbooks, and the name of the other workbook or worksheet contains spaces or non-alphabetical characters, you must enclose its name within single quotation marks ( ‘ ), like =’Quarterly Data’!D3, or =‘123’!A1.

Place an exclamation point (!) after a worksheet name when you refer to it in a formula

For example, to return the value from cell D3 in a worksheet named Quarterly Data in the same workbook, use this formula: =’Quarterly Data’!D3.

Include the path to external workbooks

Make sure that each external reference contains a workbook name and the path to the workbook.

A reference to a workbook includes the name of the workbook and must be enclosed in brackets ([ Workbookname.xlsx]). The reference must also contain the name of the worksheet in the workbook.

If the workbook that you want to refer to is not open in Excel, you can still include a reference to it in a formula. You provide the full path to the file, such as in the following example: =ROWS(‘C:My Documents[Q2 Operations.xlsx]Sales’!A1:A8). This formula returns the number of rows in the range that includes cells A1 through A8 in the other workbook (8).

Note: If the full path contains space characters, as does the preceding example, you must enclose the path in single quotation marks (at the beginning of the path and after the name of the worksheet, before the exclamation point).

Enter numbers without formatting

Do not format numbers when you enter them in formulas. For example, if the value that you want to enter is $1,000, enter 1000 in the formula. If you enter a comma as part of a number, Excel treats it as a separator character. If you want numbers displayed so that they show thousands or millions separators, or currency symbols, format the cells after you enter the numbers.

For example, if you want to add 3100 to the value in cell A3, and you enter the formula =SUM(3,100,A3), Excel adds the numbers 3 and 100 and then adds that total to the value from A3, instead of adding 3100 to A3 which would be =SUM(3100,A3). Or, if you enter the formula =ABS(-2,134), Excel displays an error because the ABS function accepts only one argument: =ABS(-2134).

You can implement certain rules to check for errors in formulas. These rules do not guarantee that your worksheet is error free, but they can go a long way toward finding common mistakes. You can turn any of these rules on or off individually.

Errors can be marked and corrected in two ways: one error at a time (like a spell checker), or immediately when they occur on the worksheet as you enter data.

You can resolve an error by using the options that Excel displays, or you can ignore the error by clicking Ignore Error. If you ignore an error in a particular cell, the error in that cell does not appear in further error checks. However, you can reset all previously ignored errors so that they appear again.

For Excel on Windows, Click File > Options > Formulas, or
for Excel on Mac, click the Excel menu > Preferences > Error Checking.

In Excel 2007, click the Microsoft Office button > Excel Options > Formulas.

Under Error Checking, check Enable background error checking. Any error that is found, will be marked with a triangle in the top-left corner of the cell.

To change the color of the triangle that marks where an error occurs, in the Indicate errors using this color box, select the color that you want.

Under Excel checking rules, select or clear the check boxes of any of the following rules:

Cells containing formulas that result in an error: A formula does not use the expected syntax, arguments, or data types. Error values include #DIV/0!, #N/A, #NAME?, #NULL!, #NUM!, #REF!, and #VALUE!. Each of these error values have different causes and are resolved in different ways.

Note: If you enter an error value directly in a cell, it is stored as that error value but is not marked as an error. However, if a formula in another cell refers to that cell, the formula returns the error value from that cell.

Inconsistent calculated column formula in tables: A calculated column can include individual formulas that are different from the master column formula, which creates an exception. Calculated column exceptions are created when you do any of the following:

Type data other than a formula in a calculated column cell.

Type a formula in a calculated column cell, and then use Ctrl +Z or click Undo on the Quick Access Toolbar.

Type a new formula in a calculated column that already contains one or more exceptions.

Copy data into the calculated column that does not match the calculated column formula. If the copied data contains a formula, this formula overwrites the data in the calculated column.

Move or delete a cell on another worksheet area that is referenced by one of the rows in a calculated column.

Cells containing years represented as 2 digits: The cell contains a text date that can be misinterpreted as the wrong century when it is used in formulas. For example, the date in the formula =YEAR(«1/1/31») could be 1931 or 2031. Use this rule to check for ambiguous text dates.

Numbers formatted as text or preceded by an apostrophe: The cell contains numbers stored as text. This typically occurs when data is imported from other sources. Numbers that are stored as text can cause unexpected sorting results, so it is best to convert them to numbers. ‘=SUM(A1:A10) is seen as text.

Formulas inconsistent with other formulas in the region: The formula does not match the pattern of other formulas near it. In many cases, formulas that are adjacent to other formulas differ only in the references used. In the following example of four adjacent formulas, Excel displays an error next to the formula =SUM(A10:C10) in cell D4 because the adjacent formulas increment by one row, and that one increments by 8 rows — Excel expects the formula =SUM(A4:C4).

If the references that are used in a formula are not consistent with those in the adjacent formulas, Excel displays an error.

Formulas which omit cells in a region: A formula may not automatically include references to data that you insert between the original range of data and the cell that contains the formula. This rule compares the reference in a formula against the actual range of cells that is adjacent to the cell that contains the formula. If the adjacent cells contain additional values and are not blank, Excel displays an error next to the formula.

For example, Excel inserts an error next to the formula =SUM(D2:D4) when this rule is applied, because cells D5, D6, and D7 are adjacent to the cells that are referenced in the formula and the cell that contains the formula (D8), and those cells contain data that should have been referenced in the formula.

Unlocked cells containing formulas: The formula is not locked for protection. By default, all cells on a worksheet are locked so they can’t be changed when the worksheet is protected. This can help avoid inadvertent mistakes like accidentally deleting or altering formulas. This error indicates that the cell has been set to be unlocked, but the sheet has not been protected. Check to make sure that you do not want the cell locked or not.

Formulas referring to empty cells: The formula contains a reference to an empty cell. This can cause unintended results, as shown in the following example.

Suppose you want to calculate the average of the numbers in the following column of cells. If the third cell is blank, it is not included in the calculation and the result is 22.75. If the third cell contains 0, the result is 18.2.

Data entered in a table is invalid: There is a validation error in a table. Check the validation setting for the cell by going to the Data tab > Data Tools group > Data Validation.

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The more formulas you write, the more errors you’ll run into

Although frustrating, formula errors are useful, because they tell you clearly that something is wrong. This is much better than not knowing.  The most disastrous Excel mistakes usually come from normal-looking formulas that quietly return incorrect results.

When you run into a formula error, don’t panic. Stay calm and methodically investigate until you find the cause. Ask yourself, «What is this error telling me?» Experiment with trial and error. As you gain more experience, you’ll be able to avoid many errors, and more quickly correct errors that do arise.

#DIV/0!,  #NAME?, #N/A, #NUM, #VALUE!, #REF!, #NULL, ####, #SPILL!, #CALC!

Fixing Errors

Here is a basic process for fixing errors below. Remember that formula errors often «cascade» through a worksheet, when one error triggers another. As you find and fix the core issue, things often come together quickly.

1. Find errors. You can use Go to Special > Formula as described below.

2. Trace the error back to its source. If this is difficult, try the trace error feature.

3. Figure out what’s causing the error. If needed, break the formula into parts.

4. Fix the error at the source. 

Video: Excel formula error examples

Video: Use F9 to debug a formula

Finding all errors

You can find all errors at once with Go To Special. Use the keyboard shortcut Control + G, then click the «Special» button. Excel will display the dialog with many options seen below. To select only errors, choose Formulas + Errors, then click «OK»:

Error codes

The ERROR.TYPE function will return the numeric error code associated with an error. The table below shows the code for each error.

Error	Code
#NULL!	1
#DIV/0!	2
#VALUE!	3
#REF!	4
#NAME?	5
#NUM!	6
#N/A	7
#SPILL!	9
#CALC!	14

Trapping Errors

Trapping errors is a way of «catching» errors to stop them from appearing in the first place. This makes sense when you know certain errors are likely and you want to stop error messages from appearing. There are two basic approaches:

2. Trap the error with IFERROR or ISERROR. With this approach you are watching for an error, and providing an alternative when an error is detected. This page shows a VLOOKUP example.

3. Prevent calculation until required values are available. In this case, instead of watching for an error, you try to prevent the error from occurring by checking values first. This page shows several examples.

Error codes

There are 9 error codes that you’re likely to run into at some point as you work with Excel’s formulas. This section shows examples of each formula error, with information and links on how to correct the error.

#DIV/0! error

As the name suggests, the #DIV/0! error appears when a formula tries to divide by zero, or by a value equivalent to zero. You may see a #DIV/0! error when data is not yet complete. For example, a cell in the worksheet is blank because data has not been entered, or is not yet available. You also may see the divide by zero error with the AVERAGEIF and AVERAGEIFS functions, when the criteria does not match any cells in the range.

For example, in the worksheet below, the DIV error displayed in cell D4 because C4 is empty. Empty cells are evaluated as zero by Excel, and B4 can’t be divided by zero:

In many cases, empty cells or missing values are unavoidable. You can use the IFERRROR function to trap the #DIV/0! and display a more friendly message if you like. 

More: How to fix the #DIV/0! error

#NAME? error

The #NAME? error indicates that Excel does not recognize something. This could be a function name misspelled, a named range that doesn’t exist, or a cell reference entered incorrectly. For example, in the screen below, the VLOOKUP function in F3 is misspelled «VLOKUP». VLOKUP is not a valid name, so the formula returns #NAME?.

To fix a #NAME? error, you must find the problem, then correct spelling or a syntax. For more details and examples, see this page.

#N/A error

The #N/A error appears when something can’t be found. It tells you something is missing or misspelled. This could be a product code not yet available, an employee name misspelled, a color that doesn’t exist, etc. Often, #N/A errors are caused by extra space characters, misspellings, or an incomplete lookup table. The functions mostly commonly affected by the #N/A error are classic lookup functions, including VLOOKUP, HLOOKUP, LOOKUP, and MATCH.

For example, in the screen below, the formula in F3 returns #N/A because «Bacon» is not in the lookup table:

If the value in E3 is changed to «coffee», «eggs», etc. VLOOKUP will work normally and retrieve the item cost.

The best way to prevent #N/A errors is to make sure lookup values and lookup tables are correct and complete. If necessary, you can trap the #N/A error with IFERROR and display a more friendly message, or display nothing at all. ‘

More information: How to fix the #N/A error.

#NUM! error

The #NUM! error occurs when a number is too large or small, or when a calculation is impossible.  For example, if you try to calculate the square root of a negative number, you’ll see a #NUM error:

In the screen above the SQRT function used to calculate the square root numbers in column B. The formula in C5 returns the #NUM! error because the value in B5 is negative, and it is not possible to compute the square root of a negative number.

You might also run into the #NUM error if you reverse start and end dates inside the DATEDIF function.

In general, fixing the #NUM! error is a matter of adjusting inputs as required to make a calculation possible again.

More information: How to fix the #NUM! error.

#VALUE! error

The #VALUE! error appears when a value is not an expected or valid type (i.e. date, time, number, text, etc.) This can happen when a cell is left blank, when a text value is given to a function that expects a numeric value, or when dates are evaluated as text by Excel. 

For example, in the screen below, cell C3 contains the text «NA», and the formula in F2 returns the #VALUE! error.

Below, the MONTH function can’t extract a month value from «apple», since «apple» is not a date:

Note: you may also see a #VALUE! error if you create an array formula and forget to enter the formula with Control + Shift + Enter.

To fix a #VALUE! error, you need to track down the problematic value, and supply the right type of value. For more details and examples, see this page.

#REF! error

The #REF! error is one of the most common errors you’ll see in Excel formulas.  It occurs when a reference becomes invalid. In many cases, this is because sheets, rows, or columns have been removed, or because a formula with relative references has been copied to a new location where references are invalid. 

For example, in the screen below, the formula in C8 was copied to E4. At this new location, since the range C3:C7 is relative, it becomes invalid and the formula returns #REF!:

#REF! errors can be somewhat tricky to fix because the original cell reference is gone forever. If you delete a row or column and see #REF! errors, you should undo the action immediately and adjust formulas first.

More details on #REF! errors.

#NULL! error

The #NULL! error is quite rare in Excel, and is usually the result of a typo where a space character is used instead of a comma (,) or colon (:) between two cell references. For example, in the screen below the formula in F3 returns the #NULL error:

Technically, this is because the space character is the «range intersect» operator and the #NULL! error is reporting that the two ranges (C3 and C7) do not intersect. In most cases, you can correct a NULL error by replacing a space with a comma or colon as needed.

More: How to fix the #NULL! error

#### error

Although technically not an error, you may also see a formula that displays a string of hash characters (###) instead of a normal result. For example, in the screen below, the formula in C3 is adding 5 days to the date in column B:

In this case the hash or pound characters (###) appear because the dates in column C are formatted with a long format and do not fit into the column. To fix this error, just make the column wider.

Note: Excel won’t display negative dates. If a formula returns a negative date value, Excel will display #####.

More: How to fix ##### errors

#SPILL! error

The #SPILL error occurs when a formula outputs a spill range that runs into a cell that already contains data. For example, in the screen below, the UNIQUE function is configured to extract a list of unique names into a spill range starting in D3. Because D5 contains «apple», the operation is stopped and the formula returns #SPILL!.

When «apple» is deleted from D5, the formula will work normally, and return «Joe», «Sam», and «Mary».

Details: How to fix #SPILL errors

Video: Spilling and the spill range

#CALC! error

The #CALC error occurs when a formula runs into a calculation error with an array.  For example, in the screen below, the FILTER function is set up to filter the source data in B5:D11. However, the formula is asking for all data in the group «apple», which doesn’t exist:

If the formula is adjusted to filter on group «A», the formula will work normally:

=FILTER(B5:D11,B5:B11="a")

Note: SPILL and CALC errors are related to «Dynamic Arrays» in Office 365 only.