AutoSum shortcut in Excel - Cell-by-Cell Formula Trace

Sample Data

This data shows two columns of numbers. We want to sum the numbers in column A and column B using the AutoSum shortcut.

Cell	Value
A1	10
A2	20
A3	30
A4
B1	5
B2	15
B3	25
B4

Formula Trace

=SUM(A1:A3)

Step 1: A1:A3

Step 2: SUM(10, 20, 30)

Cell Reference Map

    A    B
1 | 10 |  5 |
2 | 20 | 15 |
3 | 30 | 25 |
4 |    |    |

Formula in A4: =SUM(A1:A3) -> sums values in A1, A2, A3

The formula in cell A4 sums the values from cells A1 to A3.

Result

    A    B
1 | 10 |  5 |
2 | 20 | 15 |
3 | 30 | 25 |
4 | 60 |    |

Cell A4 shows the sum of A1 to A3, which is 60.

The sum of the numbers in cells A1 to A3 is displayed in cell A4.

Sheet Trace Quiz - 3 Questions

What does the formula =SUM(A1:A3) calculate?

A The total of values in cells A1, A2, and A3

B The average of values in cells A1 to A3

C The product of values in cells A1 to A3

D The difference between A1 and A3

Key Result

SUM(range) adds all numbers in the specified range of cells.