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: Averaging Values for a Given Month and Year.

Averaging Values for a Given Month and Year

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated March 19, 2021)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


George has a worksheet that includes dates (in column A) and values associated with those dates (in column B). The worksheet includes values for the last several years. He would like to calculate the average of all the values for a given month in a given year. For instance, George would like to calculate the average of all the values for May 2011.

There are several different ways to approach this problem. One way is to create a PivotTable based on your data. (PivotTables are great for aggregating and analyzing huge amounts of data.) You can easily set the value field to Average (instead of the default Sum) and group the Dates column by whatever you want.

If you'd rather not use a PivotTable, there are any number of formulas you can add to your worksheet. For instance, the following formula uses the SUMPRODUCT function to calculate the average:

=SUMPRODUCT((MONTH(A2:A1000)=5)*(YEAR(A2:A1000)=2011)*(B2:B1000)) /
(SUMPRODUCT((MONTH(A2:A1000)=5)*(YEAR(A2:A1000)=2011)*1))

The formula assumes your dates and values begin in row 2 (to allow for headings) and don't go past row 1000. If there are no dates in the data that are in the month of May 2011, then the formula returns a #DIV/0! error.

Another approach is to use an array formula, such as the following:

=AVERAGE(IF((MONTH(A2:A1000)=5)*(YEAR(A2:A1000)=2011),B2:B1000))

This approach is shorter than the SUMPRODUCT formula, but you've got to remember to hold down Ctrl+Shift+Enter as you enter the formula. You'll also get the division by zero error if there is no data for the desired month and year.

Still another approach is to use one of the database functions of Excel, DAVERAGE. All you need to do is set up a criteria table that defines what you are looking for. Assume, for example, that the headings on the columns are something original, like Date (cell A1) and Value (cell B1). You could set up a criteria table in another place, such as D1:E2. The table could look like this:

Date         Date
>4/30/11     <6/1/11

The criteria table says that you want DAVERAGE to use anything in which the Date column contains a date greater than 4/30/11 and a date less than 6/1/11. Here's the formula:

=DAVERAGE(A1:B1000,"Value",D1:E2)

The first parameter defines your database, the second parameter indicates that you want to average the information in the Value column (column B), and the third parameter tells DAVERAGE where your criteria table is located.

One quite easy way is to apply filtering of dates and use the SUBTOTAL function. Enter the following formula into a cell:

=SUBTOTAL(101,B2:B1000)

Select a cell in your data range and turn on the AutoFilter (choose Data | Filter | AutoFilter). Click the filtering arrow at the top of column A and then choose Custom Filter from the drop-down list. Excel displays the Custom AutoFilter dialog box. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Custom AutoFilter dialog box.

Use the controls in the dialog box to specify that you want records greater than 4/30/11 and less than 6/1/11. When you click on OK, only those records within May 2011 are displayed, and the subtotal formula shows the average of those visible records.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (10670) 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: Averaging Values for a Given Month and Year.

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

Putting Something in Every Cell of a Table

Need to make sure that all the cells of a table have something in them? It's easy to do with a handy little macro.

Discover More

Making Simple Markup the Default for Track Changes

Word allows you to view any tracked changes in your documents in a variety of ways. Here's how you can make one of those ...

Discover More

Ignoring Special Characters in COUNTIF

The COUNTIF function can be very handy when searching a range of cells for values. In some instances, though, it can ...

Discover More

Create Custom Apps with VBA! Discover how to extend the capabilities of Office 2013 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Access) with VBA programming, using it for writing macros, automating Office applications, and creating custom applications. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2013 today!

More ExcelTips (menu)

Incrementing Numeric Portions of Serial Numbers

If you use serial numbers that include both letters and numbers, you might wonder how you can increment the numeric ...

Discover More

Counting Wins and Losses

Need to count the number of W (win) or L (loss) characters in a range of cells? You can develop a number of formulaic ...

Discover More

Pulling Formulas from a Worksheet

The formulas in your worksheet can be displayed (instead of formula results) by a simple configuration change. You can ...

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 two minus 1?

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.