Nuraida Kashmin
Often we face a common problem that Excel is showing the formula where we need the result.
Instead of this
Excel is showing this
Today we are going to know about the reasons behind this problem.
Practice Workbook
Download the following workbook and exercise.
8 Reasons for Showing Formula Instead of Result in Excel
 1. Using Space Before Equal Sign for Showing Formula Instead of Result
Sometimes we put a space before the equal sign by mistake. There is a rule that all formulas must start with an equal sign and put a space before it, which violates that rule. Here we have a dataset and it’s not showing the result value as we use a space before it.
Omitting spaces before the Equal signs of the formulas will solve this problem.
Read More: How to Show All Formulas in Excel (4 Easy & Quick Methods)
 2. Wrapping the Formula in Quotes
Maximum time online, people indicate the formula by wrapping it in quotes. The formula won’t work then. Quotes can only be used inside the formula if it’s necessary. A dataset is shown below indicating this problem.
So we won’t wrap the formula in a quote.
 3. Missing of Equal Sign
Using an equal sign before the formula is a must thing in Excel. Otherwise, Excel will take the cell as simple text. The resultant dataset will look like this:
 4. Keeping ‘Show Formula’ Option Enabled
Sometimes the Show Formulas option from the Formulas ribbon gets enabled because of pressing Ctrl+` from the keyboard. Now the dataset looks like this:
To avoid the problem, simply go to the Formula ribbon and disable the Show Formulas mode.
Read More: How to Show Formula in Cells Instead of Value in Excel (7 Ways)
 5. Formatting Cells as Text
If the cell is formatted into Text, Excel won’t calculate the formula as it treats the formula as text. It’s one of the most common problems in Excel. The dataset looks like this:
To avoid this problem,
- Select the cell.
- Go to the Home tab.
- Then Number Group > Formatting drop-down > General.
Read More: How to Convert Text to Formula Using the INDIRECT Function in Excel
 6. Using Apostrophe Before the Formula
By putting an Apostrophe at the beginning of the cell, Excel considers it as a text string and doesn’t show the result of the formula. Here is a dataset with this problem:
Read More: How to Show Formulas When Printing in Excel
 7. Showing Formula Instead of Result by Entering Number with Manual Formats in Excel
If we use any Currency sign or Decimal separator before entering a number in a formula, Excel won’t take it correctly. The formula won’t be applied there and it will be displayed like this:
Read More: How to Show Value Instead of Formula in Excel (7 Methods)
 8. Deactivated ‘Formula Display’ Option for Showing Formula Instead of Result
Imagine we have a worksheet and it’s not showing the formula values because of the deactivation of the Formula Display Option. It Looks like this:
We can solve this problem manually in one worksheet but in the case of a lot of worksheets, we can simply follow these steps:
- At first, select the File tab.
- Go to the Options.
- Now Click on Advanced.
- Then go to the Display options for the portion of the worksheet and select the worksheet name from the drop-down.
- Make sure that the Show formula in cells instead of their calculated result box is unchecked.
- Finally, click OK. We can see that Excel is showing results instead of formulas.
Read More: [Fixed]: Excel Formula Not Showing Correct Result (8 Methods)
Conclusion
By remembering these reasons, we can fix the problem of showing the formula instead of the result. There is a practice workbook added. Go ahead and give it a try. Feel free to ask anything or suggest any new methods.
