How to Calculate Square Root in Microsoft Excel


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    Calculating the square root of numbers is common in mathematical equations. If you’d like to perform that calculation in Microsoft Excel, you have a couple of ways to do that. We’ll show you how.

    What Is a Square Root?

    The square root of a number is the value that you multiply by itself to get the original number. For example, the square root of 25 is 5. This is because if you multiply 5 by 5, you get 25.

    Calculate Square Root in Excel With the Caret Symbol

    One way to find the square root in Excel is to use the ^ (caret) symbol. Use this method if you do not want to use a dedicated square root function (which is our second method below).

    To start, first, open your spreadsheet with Microsoft Excel. In your spreadsheet, find the number for which you want to find the square root.

    Find the number to get the square root for.

    In the spreadsheet, click the cell in which you want to display the resulting square root.

    Select a cell to display the square root formula result.

    In the selected cell, type the following formula and press Enter. In this formula, replace D2 with the cell where you have your number.

    Tip: The ^ (caret) symbol is located on number 6 on your keyboard. Press Shift+6 to type the symbol.

    =D2^(1/2)

    Type the square root formula and press Enter.

    To directly specify your number in the formula, replace D2 in the formula with your number. Like so:

    =225^(1/2)

    Enter numbers directly in the square root formula.

    And instantly, Excel will display the resulting square root in your selected cell.

    The answer of the square root formula.

    Want to find the sum of squares in Excel? It’s equally easy to do that.

    RELATED: How to Calculate the Sum of Squares in Excel

    Calculate Square Root in Excel With the SQRT Function

    If you’d like to use a function to calculate the square root, use Excel’s dedicated SQRT function for finding square roots. This function retrieves the same result as the method above.

    To use the function, first, open your spreadsheet with Microsoft Excel. In the spreadsheet, select the cell in which you want to display the answer.

    Select a cell to display the square root function result.

    In the selected cell, enter the following SQRT function and press Enter. In this function, replace D2 with the cell where your number is.

    =SQRT(D2)

    Type the square root function and press Enter.

    If you wish to directly use the number in the function, then replace D2 with your actual number. Like this:

    =SQRT(625)

    Enter a number directly in the square root function.

    Excel will calculate the square root and display it in your selected cell.

    The result of the square root function.

    And that’s all.

    Bonus Tip: Insert the Square Root Symbol in Excel

    By default, both methods above do not display the square root (√) symbol. To add this symbol, you can use Excel’s UNICHAR function in conjunction with your preferred square root finding method.

    If you use the caret symbol method to find the square root, modify your formula as below to add the square root symbol before the answer:

    =UNICHAR(8730)&D2^(1/2)

    If you use the SQRT function, then modify the function as follows to make it show the square root symbol at the beginning of the answer:

    =UNICHAR(8730)&SQRT(D2)

    The selected cell now displays the symbol before the resulting square root number.

    Insert the square root symbol.

    And those are the ways to quickly get to the square root of a number. Very useful!


    Need to calculate something in Excel but not sure what function to use? Excel actually makes it easy to find the functions you need.

    RELATED: How to Find the Function You Need in Microsoft Excel





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