2.2 IF and the logical family
You can make a cell decide something instead of you deciding it every month.
Before:01. Excel — First StepsUnlocks:03. Excel — Analysis
IF lets a cell make a decision, and this topic builds from a single IF to combinations with AND and OR, then to IFS and SWITCH when the choices multiply. It sits early in the formula module because conditions run through everything after it, from conditional sums to validation rules. The common confusion is deeply nested IFs that nobody, including their author, can read a month later; readable logic is the goal here, and sometimes a small lookup table beats clever nesting.
Work through these
IF, and nesting versus IFS
A conditional formula makes the sheet decide, which removes a monthly manual step. Once several conditions pile up, the dedicated multi-condition function is more readable than conditions inside conditions.
AND, OR, NOT and combining conditions
Combining tests so that all of them, any of them, or none of them must hold. These three are what let one formula express a real business rule.
SWITCH and lookup tables as an alternative to nesting
A value-matching function and a small lookup table are frequently clearer than a stack of nested conditions. Choosing this route is what keeps a formula maintainable.
Keeping logic readable: the formula a colleague can maintain
A formula nobody else can read is a liability even when it is correct, because the person who inherits it will rewrite it from scratch. Readability is the actual output of this item.
Practice file
- xl-03-formula-drills.xlsx
Thirty short formula tasks with a self-checking answer column that turns green when you are right.
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