Strategic Counting with the COUNTIF Formula

The COUNTIF formula allows you to count the number of cells within a range that meet a single criterion. It is the go-to tool for HR departments tracking attendance, or sales managers counting the number of closed deals in a specific region.

How it Works?

Criteria can be defined as numbers, text strings (in quotes), or logical expressions (e.g., '>500'). It is often used to build high-level summary tables that feed into executive dashboards.

Example

To count how many times 'Approved' appears in column D: =COUNTIF(D:D, "Approved")