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Tableaubi_tool~10 mins

Storytelling with data in Tableau - Cell-by-Cell Formula Trace

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LearnWhyDeepSheetTryChallengeScenarioRecallDash
Sample Data

Monthly sales data for a small business over five months.

CellValue
A1Month
B1Sales
A2Jan
B21000
A3Feb
B31500
A4Mar
B41200
A5Apr
B51700
A6May
B61600
Formula Trace
SUM([Sales])
Step 1: SUM([Sales])
Cell Reference Map
    A       B
1 | Month | Sales |
2 |  Jan  | 1000  |
3 |  Feb  | 1500  |
4 |  Mar  | 1200  |
5 |  Apr  | 1700  |
6 |  May  | 1600  |
The formula sums all values in the Sales column (B2 to B6).
Result
    A       B       C
1 | Month | Sales | Total Sales |
2 |  Jan  | 1000  |            |
3 |  Feb  | 1500  |            |
4 |  Mar  | 1200  |            |
5 |  Apr  | 1700  |            |
6 |  May  | 1600  |    7000    |
The total sales value 7000 is shown in cell C6, summarizing all monthly sales.
Sheet Trace Quiz - 3 Questions
Test your understanding
What does the formula SUM([Sales]) calculate?
AThe total sales from January to May
BThe average sales per month
CThe sales for the month of May only
DThe difference between highest and lowest sales
Key Result
SUM aggregates all numeric values in a column to produce a total.