A to Z of Excel Functions: The ROUND Function

Welcome back to our regular A to Z of Excel Functions blog.  Today we look at the ROUND function.

The ROUND function

If only my brother knew what a ROUND was…  The ROUND function rounds a number to a specified number of digits.  It employs the following syntax to operate:

The ROUND function has the following arguments:

• number: this is required and represents the value to be rounded
• num_digits: also required, this is the number of digits to which you wish to round the number.

It should be further noted that:

• ROUND rounds to the nearest number, but be careful of midpoints.  For example, ROUND(3.5,0) equals 4, but ROUND(-3.5,0) equals -4, not -3 (see image, below)

• the number can be a number, a cell reference or a named range
• this function operates on the actual value in the cell and rounds it so it is consistent with the value that is displayed
• using this function will change the underlying value and not just the value that is displayed
• you can use the ROUNDDOWN function if you always want the number rounded down to the nearest integer
• you can use the ROUNDUP function if you always want the number rounded up to the nearest integer
• you can use the FLOOR.MATH function to round down to the nearest integer or significant figure
• you can use the CEILING.MATH function to round up to the nearest integer or significant figure
• you can use the MROUND function to round to a desired multiple
• you can use the EVEN function to round up to the nearest even integer
• you can use the ODD function to round up to the nearest odd integer
• the equivalent VBA function is VBA.ROUND.

Please see my examples below:

We’ll continue our A to Z of Excel Functions soon.  Keep checking back – there’s a new blog post every other business day.