Formula fixer
Fix a broken formula and see why it broke
Paste the formula and say what goes wrong. You get the cause in plain English, a corrected formula, and tips to stop it happening again.
- Explains the cause
- Corrected formula
- Excel and Google Sheets
Your recent formulas
Saved in this browser only.
Common errors
What each error means
#N/A
A lookup could not find the value.
Check for extra spaces, numbers stored as text, or a missing FALSE in VLOOKUP.
#VALUE!
Wrong type of value, usually text where a number is expected.
Clean the data with VALUE, TRIM or SUBSTITUTE, or check the arguments.
#REF!
The formula points to cells that no longer exist.
Undo the deleted rows or columns, or rewrite the reference.
#DIV/0!
Division by zero or by an empty cell.
Wrap it in IFERROR or test the divisor first.
#NAME?
A misspelled function, missing quotes, or a function your version lacks.
Check spelling and quotes, and your Excel version.
#SPILL!
A dynamic array has no room to spill its results.
Clear the cells below or to the right.
More free spreadsheet tools
Everything you need when a formula gets in the way.
- Formula generatorDescribe it in plain English, get a working formula.Open tool
- Formula explainerPaste any formula and see what each part does.Open tool
- Excel ↔ Sheets converterTranslate formulas between Excel and Google Sheets.Open tool
- Clean my dataTrim, dedupe and tidy a table, privately in your browser.Open tool
- VBA & Apps ScriptMacros for Excel and scripts for Google Sheets.Open tool
- Regex formulasExtract, match and replace text with REGEX functions.Open tool
- Conditional formattingCustom-formula rules to highlight cells and rows.Open tool
Frequently asked questions
What should I paste into the fixer?
Paste the formula and describe what goes wrong, for example "returns #N/A even though the value exists" or "shows FALSE for scores under 70". The more you say about the result you expected, the better the fix.
Can it fix formulas when the problem is in my data?
It will tell you when the cause is likely the data, for example numbers stored as text or invisible spaces, and suggest how to clean it. The Clean my data tool can then fix the column for you.
Does it fix Google Sheets formulas too?
Yes. Set the app to Google Sheets. It handles Sheets errors and functions such as ARRAYFORMULA, QUERY and IMPORTRANGE.
Why does my formula work in one row but not when I copy it down?
Usually a reference that should be fixed is moving. Add $ signs to the range, for example $A$2:$A$100. The fixer spots this and explains it.