Math
COUNTA
Definition
COUNTA returns how many cells in the list are not empty.
Syntax
=COUNTA(value1, [value2], ...)
Arguments
| Argument | Meaning |
|---|---|
value1 |
The first item to check: a cell, a range such as B2:B5, or a typed value. |
value2, ... |
Optional extra items or ranges to check as well. |
Worked example
A packing list stores notes in B2:B5. Some cells are empty.
| A: Slot | B: Note |
|---|---|
| 1 | 4 |
| 2 | bin |
| 3 | |
| 4 | bin |
Formula: =COUNTA(B2:B5)
Result: 3. B2, B3, and B5 hold values, including the number 4, and B4 is empty, so three cells count.
Practice
Cell A2 holds 1, cell A3 holds x, cell A4 is empty, and cell A5 holds 0. In B2, write a formula that counts how many cells in A2:A5 are not empty.
- In B2, write a COUNTA formula for A2:A5.
- B2 should show how many filled cells are in A2:A5.
Step 1 of 2
Enter =COUNTA(A2:A5) in B2.
1, x, and 0 are filled. The empty cell is not, so the count is 3.
Formulas here use English function names, such as SUM, and a period as the decimal separator, in every language.
Loading the sheet…
B2 uses COUNTA.
B2 now shows 3.
Related functions
COUNT tallies only numeric cells, so it would skip the letter x. COUNTIF counts cells that pass one test. COUNTA counts every filled cell.
Common mistake
Expecting COUNTA to skip 0: a cell that holds 0 is filled, so it still counts.