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How to calculate variance in Excel and Google Sheets
Topic:RANK & statistical aggregatesHeads up: Excel and Google Sheets do this differently.
Excel
=VAR.S(B2:B6)Google Sheets
=VAR(B2:B6)✓
Verified example
Computed by a real spreadsheet engine on the sample data below.
| Test | Result |
| Trial 1 | 40 |
| Trial 2 | 55 |
| Trial 3 | 50 |
| Trial 4 | 60 |
| Trial 5 | 45 |
=VAR.S(B2:B6)→62.5
Try it with your data
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Step by step
- 1Select the output cell.
- 2In Excel, type =VAR.S(B2:B6) for sample variance.
- 3In Google Sheets, type =VAR(B2:B6) — equivalent to sample variance.
- 4For population variance: Excel uses =VAR.P(B2:B6); Google Sheets uses =VARP(B2:B6).
- 5Press Enter.
Tips
- Variance is in squared units of the original data. Take the square root (SQRT) to get standard deviation.
- VAR.S uses N-1 in the denominator (Bessel's correction); VAR.P uses N.
- Google Sheets VAR is equivalent to Excel VAR.S; both compute sample variance.
- VARA and VARPA include text (as 0) and logical values in the calculation.
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Frequently asked
What is the relationship between variance and standard deviation?
Standard deviation is the square root of variance. =SQRT(VAR.S(B2:B6)) equals =STDEV.S(B2:B6).
Which function name should I use in Google Sheets?
Use =VAR(range) for sample variance and =VARP(range) for population variance. Google Sheets does not use the .S/.P naming convention.
More on RANK & statistical aggregates
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RANK.EQ
Returns the rank of a number in a list, assigning the same rank to ties (same as RANK). Essential for leaderboards.
How-toHow to rank values
Rank a number against a list with RANK — highest first or lowest first. Works the same in Excel and Google Sheets.
ReferenceRANK.AVG
Returns the rank of a number, averaging ranks for ties. Useful in statistical analysis where tied ranks should not cluster.
How-toHow to calculate standard deviation
Measure how spread out your numbers are with STDEV for a sample or STDEVP for a whole population. Works in Excel and Google Sheets.
ReferencePERCENTILE
Returns the k-th percentile value from a dataset. Useful for performance benchmarking and threshold analysis.
How-toHow to calculate a weighted average
Combine values and their weights with SUMPRODUCT divided by the total weight. Works the same in Excel and Google Sheets.