Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Excel 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Excel, click here: Deriving an Absolute Value in a Macro.

Deriving an Absolute Value in a Macro

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated September 16, 2020)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


VBA provides a function to return the absolute value of an expression. For those who might not remember from math class, an absolute value is the positive equivalent of any expression. Thus, if a formula would normally result in a negative value, such as —27, the absolute value of that formula would result in the positive equivalent, or 27.

The syntax for the absolute value function is as follows:

x = Abs(y)

where x is the result and y is a value or an expression that evaluates to a value.

Note:

If you would like to know how to use the macros described on this page (or on any other page on the ExcelTips sites), I've prepared a special page that includes helpful information. Click here to open that special page in a new browser tab.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2446) applies to Microsoft Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. You can find a version of this tip for the ribbon interface of Excel (Excel 2007 and later) here: Deriving an Absolute Value in a Macro.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Changing an Existing Style

Excel allows you to create styles that define how your data looks. At some point you may want to change a style you ...

Discover More

Tracing Errors

Sometimes it can be confusing to figure out the source of an error that is displayed in your worksheet. Excel provides a ...

Discover More

Copying Print Areas when Copying Worksheets

Print areas are a great way to define what, exactly, you want to print from a worksheet. When you copy worksheets, the ...

Discover More

Excel Smarts for Beginners! Featuring the friendly and trusted For Dummies style, this popular guide shows beginners how to get up and running with Excel while also helping more experienced users get comfortable with the newest features. Check out Excel 2013 For Dummies today!

More ExcelTips (menu)

Delimited Text-to-Columns in a Macro

The Text-to-Columns tool is an extremely powerful feature that allows you to divide data in a variety of ways. Excel even ...

Discover More

Determining Mouse Cursor Coordinates On a Graphic

Add a graphic to a worksheet as part of an Image object, and you can use some very handy event handlers to figure out the ...

Discover More

Removing All Macros

Macros are stored as part of a workbook so that they are always available when you have the workbook open. If you want to ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 6 - 6?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


This Site

Got a version of Excel that uses the menu interface (Excel 97, Excel 2000, Excel 2002, or Excel 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.