Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Excel in Microsoft 365. 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: Displaying a Count of Zeros on the Status Bar.

Displaying a Count of Zeros on the Status Bar

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated October 5, 2021)
This tip applies to Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Excel in Microsoft 365


1

Jeremy's company is often interested in how many cells contain the value zero. He wonders if there is a way to customize the status bar to automatically display the COUNTIF formula. He knows he can see the results of functions such as AVERAGE, COUNT, SUM and others, but can't find a way to do a more complex COUNTIF display.

Unfortunately there is no way to modify the default functions available on the status bar. There are, however, some workarounds that you can consider. The obvious is to use a formula in a cell to evaluate the number of zeros in a range:

=COUNTIF(A1:E52,0)

You could also select the desired range and use the Find tool (Ctrl+F) to search for the number 0. If you click on Find All, the dialog box reports the number of occurrences in the selected range—the number of zeros.

There is one potential drawback to using the Find and Replace tool. By default, it will find all instances of "zeros" such as those in values like 20, 60, 105, 1003, etc. You can, however, modify how the Find and Replace tool does its work so that it finds only cells that actually contain 0. Just follow these steps:

  1. Press Ctrl+F to display the Find and Replace dialog box.
  2. Expand the dialog box by clicking the Options button. (See Figure 1.)
  3. Figure 1. The Find tab of the Find and Replace dialog box.

  4. Make sure that the Match Entire Cell Contents check box is selected.
  5. In the Find What box type 0.
  6. Click the Find All option. Excel reports the number of occurrences it located.

If you prefer, you can create a short macro that will do the calculation and display it on the status bar. The following is an example of a macro that is run every time the selection is changed in the worksheet.

Private Sub Worksheet_SelectionChange(ByVal Target As Range)
    zCount = Application.WorksheetFunction.CountIf(Target.Cells,0)
    Application.StatusBar = "Selection has " & CStr(zCount) & " zeros"
End Sub

All you need to do is make sure that you place this code within the code module for the worksheet you want affected. (Just right-click the worksheet's tab and choose View Code from the resulting Context menu. That's where the code should be placed.)

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 (12511) applies to Microsoft Excel 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Excel in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Excel here: Displaying a Count of Zeros on the Status Bar.

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. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Determining Page Layout

Getting your document onto paper is the whole purpose of word processing. Here are some concepts that are important when ...

Discover More

Setting Vertical Alignment

Excel allows you to adjust not only the horizontal alignment of values in a cell, but also the vertical alignment. This ...

Discover More

Listing Documents with Passwords

Do you need a list of documents that require a password or that require a particular password to open? Word doesn't ...

Discover More

Program Successfully in Excel! John Walkenbach's name is synonymous with excellence in deciphering complex technical topics. With this comprehensive guide, "Mr. Spreadsheet" shows how to maximize your Excel experience using professional spreadsheet application development tips from his own personal bookshelf. Check out Excel 2013 Power Programming with VBA today!

More ExcelTips (ribbon)

Changing Your Name

One of the many pieces of information that Excel keeps track of is your name. If you want to change your name for Excel's ...

Discover More

Stopping an Excel Window from Maximizing

When you drag an Excel window near the edge of your screen, you may end up having that window occupy more of the screen ...

Discover More

Not Enough System Resources

When you are using Excel, it can be frustrating to receive a cryptic error message that indicates the program cannot ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is nine more than 7?

2018-03-03 03:30:11

Einat Zvirin

Hello, this is very interesting, but I tried it and it doesn't wok (Excel 2013)


This Site

Got a version of Excel that uses the ribbon interface (Excel 2007 or later)? This site is for you! If you use an earlier version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the menu interface.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.