The CEILING function in Excel is used to round a number up to the nearest specified multiple or significance. It helps ensure that a number is always rounded up to a certain level, which can be particularly useful in financial calculations, pricing, and other scenarios.
Syntax
CEILING(number, significance)
Arguments
number | The number you want to round up to the nearest significance. |
significance | The multiple to which you want to round the number up. This can be a positive or negative number, and it determines the level to which the number is rounded up. |
How to use
The CEILING function is straightforward to use. You provide it with a number and a significance, and it rounds the number up to the nearest multiple of the given significance.
Here’s an example:
1 |
=CEILING(17, 5) |
This formula rounds the number 17 up to the nearest multiple of 5, which is 20.
You can also use negative values for the significance. For instance:
1 |
=CEILING(23, -10) |
This formula rounds the number 23 up to the nearest multiple of -10, which is -20.
If you need to round to a different level of precision, simply change the significance value. For example:
1 |
=CEILING(42.75, 0.1) |
This formula rounds 42.75 up to the nearest multiple of 0.1, resulting in 42.8.
Remember that if the number is already a multiple of the specified significance, it won’t be rounded up further. The function only rounds up when necessary to reach the nearest multiple.
Additional Information: The CEILING function can be combined with other Excel functions and formulas to perform more complex calculations and adjustments. It is especially useful in financial modeling and pricing calculations.