Excel Multiply Function - Easy Ways To Calculate

Figuring out totals in spreadsheets is a common task for many people, whether they are looking at numbers for school, for work, or just for personal use. It really does not matter if you are trying to make sense of figures for a project, tracking sales numbers, or just keeping track of your budget at home; knowing how to multiply within a spreadsheet program like Excel is a very handy thing to know. It helps you get to your answers quickly and without much fuss, which, you know, is pretty helpful when you have a lot of numbers to work with.

When you are working with a lot of data, sometimes you need to combine different sets of numbers to get a new result. This often means taking one number and making it bigger by a certain amount, or perhaps finding out what happens when you have several items at a certain price. This kind of operation, which we call multiplication, is something Excel handles with a lot of ease, actually. There are a few different ways to go about it, and each way can be quite helpful depending on what you are trying to achieve with your figures, so, it is worth looking at them.

This information will walk you through the various approaches you can take to multiply numbers inside your spreadsheet program. We will explore the common symbols you might use, some of the built-in tools, and how to work with whole groups of numbers all at once. By the time we are done, you should have a pretty good grip on how to get your numbers to do what you want them to do, more or less, when it comes to getting a product from them.

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Table of Contents

• How Do We Start with Excel Multiply Function?
  • Basic Excel Multiply Function - The Asterisk Way
  • Using the PRODUCT Function for Excel Multiply Function
• What About Multiplying Whole Columns with Excel Multiply Function?
  • Multiplying a Column by a Single Number with Excel Multiply Function
  • Multiplying Two Columns Together with Excel Multiply Function
• Can We Multiply by Percentages Using Excel Multiply Function?
• A Quick Look at Order of Operations for Excel Multiply Function
• Other Handy Ways to Use Excel Multiply Function

How Do We Start with Excel Multiply Function?

When you are ready to make numbers work for you in Excel, getting started with multiplication is quite simple. It's like telling the program exactly what you want it to do with your figures. There are a couple of main ways people usually go about this, and both are pretty straightforward once you get the hang of them. One way involves using a special mark on your keyboard, and the other involves using a built-in tool that Excel provides. Both approaches help you find the total of numbers when they are increased by a certain factor, which is, you know, the whole point of multiplying. You might find one method feels a little more natural for you than the other, or that each is better for a different kind of job you are trying to get done.

Basic Excel Multiply Function - The Asterisk Way

The most common and perhaps the easiest way to multiply numbers in Excel is by using a symbol that looks like a little star, which we call an asterisk. It is the same symbol you would use on a calculator for multiplication. When you put this mark between numbers or between the places where your numbers are kept (which we call cells), Excel knows you want to combine them in a multiplicative way. For instance, if you wanted to figure out what two times three is, you would type something like `=2*3` into a cell. The equal sign at the beginning is very important because it tells Excel that you are giving it an instruction to perform a calculation, not just typing words or numbers. After you hit the enter key, the cell will show you the answer, which is six in this case. This method is very direct, and many people find it to be the quickest way to get a multiplication job done, too.

You can also use this little star symbol to multiply numbers that are already sitting in different cells. Let's say you have the number five in a spot called A1, and the number ten in a spot called B1. If you wanted to multiply these two numbers, you would go to an empty cell and type something like `=A1*B1`. When you press enter, Excel will look at what is in A1, look at what is in B1, perform the multiplication, and then show you the result, which would be fifty. This is super helpful because if you change the numbers in A1 or B1 later, the result in your formula cell will automatically update, which is pretty neat. This basic way of doing things is a fundamental part of working with figures in Excel, so, it is good to have a grasp on it.

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Using the PRODUCT Function for Excel Multiply Function

Beyond the simple star symbol, Excel also has a specific tool, a kind of built-in command, that is made just for multiplication. This tool is called the "PRODUCT" function. It is particularly useful when you have a whole list of numbers you want to multiply together, or if you want to multiply numbers that are spread out in different places across your sheet. Instead of typing a star between every single number, you can just tell the PRODUCT function where all the numbers are, and it will do the rest of the work for you, which is very convenient. For example, if you wanted to multiply the numbers five, ten, and fifteen, you could type something like `=PRODUCT(5,10,15)` into a cell. Excel would then show you the total result of all those numbers multiplied together.

The PRODUCT function also works wonderfully with groups of cells, or what we call ranges. Let's imagine you have a column of numbers from cell C1 down to C5, and you want to multiply all of them. Instead of typing `=C1*C2*C3*C4*C5`, which could get quite long if you had many more numbers, you can simply type `=PRODUCT(C1:C5)`. The colon between C1 and C5 tells Excel to include every cell from C1 all the way to C5. This makes working with long lists of numbers much less of a chore, and it keeps your formulas looking much cleaner, too. It is a slightly different way of doing the same thing as the asterisk, but for certain situations, it is definitely the better choice, more or less.

What About Multiplying Whole Columns with Excel Multiply Function?

Often, you will find yourself needing to perform multiplication across an entire group of numbers, like a whole column of prices that need to be multiplied by a quantity. This is a very common task in spreadsheets, and Excel has some clever ways to help you do it without having to type out a separate formula for every single row. It saves a lot of time and helps prevent mistakes. When you are looking at how to do this, you might be thinking about taking a whole column and increasing its values by a single fixed amount, or perhaps you have two different lists of numbers that you want to combine row by row. Both are possible, and honestly, pretty simple to set up once you know the steps. So, let's look at how we can get that done, too.

Multiplying a Column by a Single Number with Excel Multiply Function

Let's say you have a list of items in column A, and in column B, you have the price for each item. Now, you want to figure out what the price would be if everything was, for instance, three times more expensive. You want to multiply every single price in column B by the number three. You would go to the first empty cell in a new column, let's say C1, and type something like `=B1*3`. This tells Excel to take the number in B1 and multiply it by three. Once you press enter, you will see the new price for the first item.

The really cool part comes next. You do not have to type that formula over and over again for every single item in your list. Instead, you can grab the little square handle that appears at the bottom-right corner of cell C1 (after you have typed the formula and pressed enter). If you click and drag this handle down the column, Excel will automatically adjust the formula for each row. So, in cell C2, the formula will become `=B2*3`, in C3 it will be `=B3*3`, and so on. This is called "filling down" or "auto-filling," and it is a huge time-saver. If you have a number you want to multiply by that stays the same, like a sales tax rate, you might want to make sure that number's cell reference does not change when you drag the formula. You can do this by putting a dollar sign before the column letter and row number, like `=$D$1` if your fixed number is in cell D1. This makes the reference "fixed," so it always points to D1, no matter where you copy the formula, which is pretty handy, you know.

Multiplying Two Columns Together with Excel Multiply Function

Another very common situation is when you have two separate lists of numbers that you want to multiply together, row by row. For example, you might have the quantity of items sold in one column (say, column A) and the price per item in another column (say, column B). To figure out the total income for each item, you would want to multiply the quantity by the price for each individual row. Just like before, you would start in the first empty cell of a new column, perhaps C1. In C1, you would type `=A1*B1`. This instruction tells Excel to take the number in cell A1 and multiply it by the number in cell B1.

After you press enter, you will see the total for the first item. Then, just like with multiplying by a single number, you can use the fill handle to quickly apply this formula to all the other rows. Simply drag the little square at the bottom-right of cell C1 down the column. Excel will automatically adjust the cell references for each row, so C2 will show `=A2*B2`, C3 will show `=A3*B3`, and so on. This makes it very easy to get a whole new column of totals based on two existing columns. There is also a neat trick called "Paste Special" that you can use for multiplication. If you copy a number, then select a range of cells, and choose "Paste Special" with the "Multiply" option, Excel will multiply every number in your selected range by the copied number. It is a bit of a different way to go about things, but it can be quite quick for certain jobs, too.

Can We Multiply by Percentages Using Excel Multiply Function?

Yes, absolutely! Multiplying by percentages is a very common task in many situations, whether you are calculating discounts, adding sales tax, or figuring out growth rates. Excel handles percentages quite well, and it is pretty much just another form of multiplication. When you type a number followed by a percent sign, like `20%`, Excel understands this as the decimal equivalent, which is `0.20`. So, if you want to find 20% of a number, say 100, you can simply type `=100*20%` into a cell. Excel will perform the calculation and show you the answer, which is 20. This is a very direct way to work with percentages, and it saves you the step of having to convert the percentage to a decimal yourself, which is kind of nice.

You can also use cell references when working with percentages, just like with regular numbers. Let's imagine you have an original price in cell A1, and a discount percentage in cell B1 (typed as, for example, `15%`). If you want to find out the amount of the discount, you would type `=A1*B1` into another cell. Excel will then calculate the discount amount for you. If you wanted to find the price *after* the discount, you could do something like `=A1*(1-B1)`. This tells Excel to take the original price and multiply it by what is left after taking the discount away (so, if the discount is 15%, you multiply by 85%). This makes figuring out final prices after sales or markups quite simple, and it is a very practical use of the Excel multiply function, really.

A Quick Look at Order of Operations for Excel Multiply Function

When you are putting together more involved calculations in Excel, especially ones that have different kinds of operations like adding, subtracting, and multiplying all in one formula, it is helpful to know how Excel decides which part to do first. There is a specific sequence it follows, often remembered by the phrase "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally" or "PEMDAS" for short. This stands for Parentheses, Exponents, Multiplication and Division (from left to right), and Addition and Subtraction (from left to right). Knowing this helps you make sure your formulas give you the correct answer every time, which is, you know, pretty important for accuracy.

For multiplication, this means that Excel will always do any multiplication tasks before it does any addition or subtraction, unless you tell it otherwise with parentheses. For example, if you type `=2+3*4`, Excel will first multiply 3 by 4 (getting 12), and then it will add 2 to that result, giving you 14. It does not do 2 plus 3 first, then multiply by 4. If you wanted it to do 2 plus 3 first, you would need to put that part in curved brackets, like `=(2+3)*4`. In this case, Excel would first do what is inside the parentheses (2 plus 3 equals 5), and then it would multiply that result by 4, giving you 20. So, using those curved brackets is a good way to control the flow of your calculations and ensure that the Excel multiply function, and any other operations, happen in the exact sequence you intend, more or less.

Other Handy Ways to Use Excel Multiply Function

Beyond the basic ways of multiplying, there are a few other clever approaches you might find useful, especially when dealing with specific situations or larger sets of numbers. One very neat trick is using "Paste Special" with the multiply option. This is a quick way to change a whole bunch of numbers at once. For instance, if you have a column of prices and you want to increase all of them by 10%, you could type `1.1` into an empty cell, copy that cell, then select your column of prices, go to "Paste Special," and choose "Multiply." Excel will then multiply every number in your selected column by `1.1`, effectively increasing them all by 10% without you having to write a formula for each one. This can be a real time-saver for quick adjustments, you know.

Sometimes, people also use more advanced formulas, often called "array formulas," to do multiplication across entire groups of data without needing extra columns for the results. These are a bit more involved to set up, but they can be very powerful for complex calculations. For example, if you wanted to multiply corresponding items in two lists and then add up all those products, an array formula could do it all in one go. The main thing to remember is that the core idea of multiplication in Excel, whether with the asterisk or the PRODUCT function, is very straightforward. These other methods are just different ways to apply that basic idea to more particular situations, making your work with numbers easier and more efficient, actually.