Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021. If you are using an earlier version (Excel 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Excel, click here: Adjusting Values with Formulas.

Adjusting Values with Formulas

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated May 6, 2024)
This tip applies to Excel 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021


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There are times that you need to adjust the values stored in the cells of a worksheet. Most times, the tools provided by Paste Special will fit the bill just fine. For instance, you can use Paste Special to multiply or divide the values in a range of cells, as described in other issues of ExcelTips.

There is a drawback to using Paste Special, however—it changes the actual value, which you might not want to happen. Why? Because four months after making the adjustment to the values, you might not remember exactly what you did, or what the starting values were.

For this reason, you may find it more desirable to replace values with formulas that indicate what was done with your adjustment. For instance, you may have the value of 100 in cell B3, and you want to increase it by 10%. Using Paste Special you can easily change it to 110, but you may instead want to replace the value with the formula =100*1.1. With such a formula, there would be no question four months from now about the starting value or what you did to it.

The only way to adjust values with formulas is to use a macro, such as the following one:

Sub Adjust()
    Dim c As Range
    Dim sMod As String

    sMod = InputBox("Formula to add?")
    If sMod > "" Then

        For Each c In Selection
            If c.HasFormula Then
                c.Formula = "=(" & Mid(c.Formula, 2) & ")" & sMod
            Else
                c.Formula = "=" & c.Value & sMod
            End If
        Next c
    End If
End Sub

To use this macro, select the cells you want to adjust, and then run it. You are asked for a formula to add to the cells. As an example, if you wanted to multiply the cells by 1.1, you would enter *1.1 (the asterisk multiplication symbol, followed by 1.1). The macro then steps through each selected cell and makes the adjustments. If the cell contains a formula, then the formula is adjusted as you specified. If the cell contains anything else, then it is turned into a formula that includes your adjustment.

Note:

If you would like to know how to use the macros described on this page (or on any other page on the ExcelTips sites), I've prepared a special page that includes helpful information. Click here to open that special page in a new browser tab.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (9486) applies to Microsoft Excel 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Excel here: Adjusting Values with Formulas.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

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What is seven more than 1?

2019-07-13 13:04:33

Willy Vanhaelen

@Leslie Glasser
Interesting alternative for the macro with 2 advantages:
- strings are ignored (the macro generates an error)
- you can undo the operation (you cannot with a macro).

I even discovered that if you enter e.g. =1.1 in a cell intead of 1.1 then you don't have to enter your values with an equal sign. As in your example 99 becomes =(99)*(1.1).


2019-07-12 04:14:20

Leslie Glasser

A simple way to achieve the same end (for example, showing "*1.1" with values) is to ensure that the original data are entered with an equals sign, as in a formula, e.g., =99. Put 1.1 in a separate cell, copy it, then select the cells to be adjusted, Paste Special, and choose Multiply. The cell =99 becomes =(99)*1.1 and displays 108.9!


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