Why advanced formulas solve complex problems in Excel - Formula Trace Breakdown

Sample Data

This table shows products with their price, quantity bought, discount percentage, and a column to calculate total cost after discount.

Cell	Value
A1	Product
B1	Price
C1	Quantity
D1	Discount %
E1	Total Cost
A2	Apples
B2	2
C2	10
D2	5
A3	Bananas
B3	1.5
C3	20
D3	0
A4	Cherries
B4	3
C4	5
D4	10

Formula Trace

=B2*C2*(1-D2/100)

Step 1: B2

Step 2: C2

Step 3: B2*C2

Step 4: D2

Step 5: D2/100

Step 6: 1 - D2/100

Step 7: B2*C2*(1-D2/100)

Cell Reference Map

    A       B       C       D       E
1 Product  Price  Quantity Discount Total Cost
2 Apples    2       10      5       -> Formula here
3 Bananas   1.5     20      0
4 Cherries  3       5       10

The formula in E2 uses B2 (Price), C2 (Quantity), and D2 (Discount %) to calculate the total cost after discount.

Result

    A       B       C       D       E
1 Product  Price  Quantity Discount Total Cost
2 Apples    2       10      5       19
3 Bananas   1.5     20      0       
4 Cherries  3       5       10      

The total cost for Apples is calculated as 19 dollars after applying the 5% discount.

Sheet Trace Quiz - 3 Questions

What does the part 'D2/100' in the formula do?

A Calculates total price

B Multiplies price by quantity

C Converts discount percent to decimal

D Adds discount to price

Key Result

Calculate total cost by multiplying price, quantity, and discount multiplier (1 - discount%).