TOTALYTD, TOTALQTD, TOTALMTD in Power BI - Cell-by-Cell Formula Trace

Sample Data

Sales data by date for the year 2024

Cell	Value
A1	Date
B1	Sales
A2	2024-01-10
B2	100
A3	2024-02-15
B3	150
A4	2024-03-20
B4	200
A5	2024-04-05
B5	250
A6	2024-04-25
B6	300

Formula Trace

TOTALYTD(SUM(Sales), Date)

Step 1: SUM(Sales) for dates up to 2024-04-25

Step 2: TOTALYTD(SUM(Sales), Date)

Cell Reference Map

    A          B
1 | Date     | Sales |
2 |2024-01-10|  100  |
3 |2024-02-15|  150  |
4 |2024-03-20|  200  |
5 |2024-04-05|  250  |
6 |2024-04-25|  300  |

Formula references Sales (B2:B6) and Date (A2:A6)

The formula uses the Date column to determine the year-to-date range and sums the Sales values in that range

Result

    A          B       C
1 | Date     | Sales | YTD  |
2 |2024-01-10|  100  | 100  |
3 |2024-02-15|  150  | 250  |
4 |2024-03-20|  200  | 450  |
5 |2024-04-05|  250  | 700  |
6 |2024-04-25|  300  | 1000 |

The YTD column shows the running total of sales from the start of the year up to each date, calculated by TOTALYTD

Sheet Trace Quiz - 3 Questions

What does TOTALYTD(SUM(Sales), Date) calculate?

A Sum of sales from the start of the year to the current date

B Sum of sales for the current quarter only

C Sum of sales for the current month only

D Sum of all sales regardless of date

Key Result

TOTALYTD sums values from the start of the year to the current date based on a date column

Practice

1. What does the TOTALYTD function do in Power BI?

easy

A. Calculates the average of values for the entire year.

B. Calculates the sum of values for the current month only.

C. Calculates the sum of values for the current quarter only.

D. Calculates the sum of values from the start of the year to the current date.

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the purpose of TOTALYTD

   TOTALYTD sums values from the beginning of the year up to the current date.

2. Step 2: Compare with other time functions

   TOTALMTD sums for the month, TOTALQTD sums for the quarter, so TOTALYTD is for the year.

3. Final Answer:

   Calculates the sum of values from the start of the year to the current date. -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   TOTALYTD = Year-to-date sum [OK]

Hint: YTD means year-to-date sum from Jan 1 to today [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing TOTALYTD with TOTALMTD or TOTALQTD
• Thinking it calculates average instead of sum
• Using it without a proper date column

2. Which of the following is the correct syntax to calculate the quarter-to-date total sales using TOTALQTD?

easy

A. TOTALQTD(SUM(Sales[Amount]), Sales[Date])

B. TOTALQTD(Sales[Amount], Sales[Date])

C. TOTALQTD(SUM(Sales[Amount]))

D. TOTALQTD(Sales[Date], SUM(Sales[Amount]))

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify correct function parameters

   TOTALQTD requires an aggregation (like SUM) as first argument and a date column as second.

2. Step 2: Check each option

   TOTALQTD(SUM(Sales[Amount]), Sales[Date]) uses SUM(Sales[Amount]) and Sales[Date] correctly. Others miss SUM or swap arguments.

3. Final Answer:

   TOTALQTD(SUM(Sales[Amount]), Sales[Date]) -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Syntax = TOTALQTD(SUM(column), date) [OK]

Hint: First argument SUM, second argument date column [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Omitting SUM aggregation
• Swapping argument order
• Using a non-date column as date argument

3. Given the following DAX measure:

Sales YTD = TOTALYTD(SUM(Sales[Amount]), Sales[Date])

If today is March 15, 2024, and sales amounts are:
- Jan: 1000
- Feb: 1500
- Mar (up to 15th): 500
What is the value of Sales YTD?

medium

A. 1500

B. 500

C. 3000

D. 2500

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand TOTALYTD calculation

   TOTALYTD sums all sales from Jan 1 to current date (March 15).

2. Step 2: Add sales amounts up to March 15

   Jan (1000) + Feb (1500) + Mar (500) = 3000 total.

3. Final Answer:

   3000 -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   YTD sum = 1000+1500+500 = 3000 [OK]

Hint: Add all months from Jan 1 to current date [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Only summing current month
• Ignoring partial month sales
• Confusing quarter-to-date with year-to-date

4. You wrote this measure:

Sales QTD = TOTALQTD(Sales[Amount], Sales[Date])

But it returns an error. What is the likely problem?

medium

A. Missing aggregation function like SUM around Sales[Amount].

B. Date column Sales[Date] is not sorted.

C. TOTALQTD cannot be used with date columns.

D. Measure name cannot contain spaces.

Solution

1. Step 1: Check function arguments

   TOTALQTD requires an aggregation function like SUM as first argument, not a column alone.

2. Step 2: Identify error cause

   Using Sales[Amount] directly causes syntax error; wrapping with SUM fixes it.

3. Final Answer:

   Missing aggregation function like SUM around Sales[Amount]. -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Use SUM(column) inside TOTALQTD [OK]

Hint: Always wrap value column with SUM inside TOTALQTD [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Passing column directly without aggregation
• Assuming date column sorting causes error
• Thinking measure names cannot have spaces

5. You want to create a measure that shows the month-to-date sales but resets correctly at the start of each quarter. Which DAX expression should you use?

hard

A. TOTALMTD(SUM(Sales[Amount]), Sales[Date])

B. CALCULATE(SUM(Sales[Amount]), DATESBETWEEN(Sales[Date], STARTOFQUARTER(Sales[Date]), TODAY()))

C. TOTALQTD(SUM(Sales[Amount]), Sales[Date])

D. CALCULATE(SUM(Sales[Amount]), DATESBETWEEN(Sales[Date], STARTOFMONTH(Sales[Date]), TODAY()))

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand requirement

   Measure must sum sales from start of each quarter up to today (month-to-date but resets quarterly).

2. Step 2: Analyze options

   TOTALMTD(SUM(Sales[Amount]), Sales[Date]) sums month-to-date but resets monthly, not quarterly.
   TOTALQTD(SUM(Sales[Amount]), Sales[Date]) sums quarter-to-date, not month-to-date.
   CALCULATE(SUM(Sales[Amount]), DATESBETWEEN(Sales[Date], STARTOFMONTH(Sales[Date]), TODAY())) sums month-to-date using CALCULATE but resets monthly.
   CALCULATE(SUM(Sales[Amount]), DATESBETWEEN(Sales[Date], STARTOFQUARTER(Sales[Date]), TODAY())) sums sales from start of quarter to today, effectively month-to-date within quarter.

3. Final Answer:

   CALCULATE(SUM(Sales[Amount]), DATESBETWEEN(Sales[Date], STARTOFQUARTER(Sales[Date]), TODAY())) -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Use DATESBETWEEN with STARTOFQUARTER for quarterly reset [OK]

Hint: Use DATESBETWEEN with STARTOFQUARTER for custom MTD reset [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using TOTALMTD which resets monthly, not quarterly
• Confusing TOTALQTD with month-to-date logic
• Not using CALCULATE with date range for custom resets