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In Excel, users can utilize formulas to calculate date intervals or differences, such as within a day, week, month, or year. The key function for such calculations is DATEDIF, which counts the number of days, months, or years between dates. Employing this function makes subtracting dates, months, and years in Excel simple and precise.
Calculating Date Intervals and Subtraction in Excel
Efficient Methods for Calculating Date Intervals in Excel
Below are common techniques for subtracting dates, months, and years in Excel. Refer to the detailed content and examples to apply them effectively in specific Excel scenarios.
1. Direct Date Subtraction
This method involves subtracting the start date from the end date to obtain the desired result. For instance, if cell A1 contains the start date and cell B1 contains the end date => you can directly subtract dates by entering the formula: =B1- A1, resulting in the number of days.
Excel stores each date as a unique serial number, starting from a value representing January 1, 1900.
2. Subtracting Dates Using DATEDIF Function
Another method to subtract dates is by using the DATEDIF function with the following syntax:
=DATEDIF(start_date, end_date, 'd')
Note: The end date must be greater than the start date; otherwise, the function will result in an error.
3. Subtracting Dates Using the DATE Function
In this method, you'll utilize the DATE function for calculations, which may be slightly more complex. The formula for the DATE function is as follows:
=DATE(year1, month1, day1)-DATE(year, month, day)
Example: Subtracting the date 6/7/2019 from 20/5/2019 will yield the result as shown in the image below:
4. Subtracting Dates from the Current Date
In this method, to subtract dates from the current date for the date in cell A1 as shown in the image below, you'll use the TODAY() function instead of the current date and can also subtract directly using the following formula:
=TODAY() - A1
Note: You need to format the cell containing the formula =TODAY() - A1 as Number format.
Alternatively, you can continue using the DATEDIF function as follows:
=DATEDIF(A1,TODAY(),'d')
5. Calculating Week Intervals - Week Difference
To calculate week intervals or week differences, you use the DATEDIF function with the following syntax:
=DATEDIF(start_date, end_date,'d')/7
Example: If you have 2 dates to calculate the interval as shown in the image below, applying the above formula will give you the calculated number, which represents the interval measured in weeks.
Note: You need to format the cell containing the formula above as Number format.
6. Calculating Month Intervals - Month Difference
To calculate month intervals or month differences, you use the DATEDIF function with the following syntax:
=DATEDIF(start_date, end_date, 'm')
Note: You need to format the cell containing the formula above as Number format.
Example:
7. Calculating Year Intervals - Year Difference
Similarly, to calculate year intervals or year differences -> you use the DATEDIF function to calculate using the following syntax:
=DATEDIF(start_date, end_date, 'y')
Note: You need to format the cell containing the formula above as Number format.
Example:
Above are some methods to subtract dates, months, and years in Excel helping users easily calculate the interval between two dates in Excel. Therefore, calculating differences in weeks, months, or years is no longer a complex or difficult task for you after reading this article by Mytour.
In addition to calculating dates in Excel, users can also apply formulas of calculation functions to convert date/month/year formats to month/day/year format or vice versa in Excel very easily. Refer to the guide on Mytour for more useful knowledge, serving well for your work.
