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Statistical function

VARA

Estimates sample variance, counting text as 0 and TRUE as 1.

Rarely usedDifficulty 1250 · ProficientUsage rank #293 of 520
Practice · 2 questions →

When to use it

Sample variance that counts text as 0 and logicals as 1 or 0.

The shape of it

Syntax
=VARA(value1, [value2], ...)

Worked examples

  • Plain numbers

    =VARA(2,4,4,4,5,5,7,9) → 4.571428571

    Same as VAR.S on plain numbers.

  • With a logical

    =VARA(1,2,TRUE) → 0.333333333

    Variance of 1, 2, 1.

  • With text

    =VARA(A2:A4) → 33.33333333

    10, 0, and text as 0.

Worth knowing

  • VAR.S for normal data.
  • Use only when placeholders should count as zero.
  • Blanks are ignored.

Where it goes wrong

  • Text as 0 inflates variance.
  • Numbers stored as text count as 0.

Related

AVERAGECOUNTCOUNTACOUNTIFCOUNTIFSMAX

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