Performing Instant Calculations

The bottom-left corner of every Numbers document includes buttons for sum, avg, min, max, and count functions. With no cells selected, no information is displayed next to the buttons. However, if you select two or more cells, Numbers instantly fills in, respectively, the:

  • Sum of the values in the selected cells
  • Average of the values in the selected cells
  • Minimum value in the selected cells
  • Maximum value in the selected cells, and a
  • Count of the cells selected

These buttons not only provide a handy way to get quick calculations, but Numbers also lets you use them to quickly add a function to your table. Let’s say, for example, that you’d like to total the first column in a table.

To add the Sum function to a column:

  1. Select the cells in the column you’d like totaled.
  2. Drag the Sum button from the bottom-left corner of the Numbers table into the cell in which you’d like the total of the first column to appear.

Numbers adds the function to the cell and even picks up the formatting of the selected cells. You can add a Sum function to a row of cells just as easily.

To add a Sum function to a row of cells:

  1. Select a series of cells in a table row.
  2. Drag the Sum button into the vacant cell immediately to the right of the last selected cell.

Whether you add the function to your table or simply select a series of cells to perform calculations on the fly, this little trick can be very helpful.