Skip to content
Excel

DVAR function in Excel

Estimates variance based on a sample from selected database entries

=DVAR(database, field, criteria)

DVAR syntax and parameters

Three arguments, three required.

  • databaserangeRequired

    The range of cells that makes up the list or database. A database is a list of related data in which rows of related information are records, and columns of data are fields. The first row of the list contains labels for each column.

  • fieldanyRequired

    Indicates which column is used in the function. Enter the column label enclosed between double quotation marks, such as "Age" or "Yield," or a number (without quotation marks) that represents the position of the column within the list: 1 for the first column, 2 for the second column, and so on.

  • criteriarangeRequired

    The range of cells that contains the conditions that you specify. You can use any range for the criteria argument, as long as it includes at least one column label and at least one cell below the column label in which you specify a condition for the column.

DVAR examples

Formulas you'll actually reuse.

  1. Sample variance of West order amounts:

    =DVAR(A1:E200, "Amount", G1:G2)

  2. Its square root equals DSTDEV — variance and deviation agree:

    =SQRT(DVAR(A1:E200, 4, G1:H2))

DVAR in Google Sheets

Same name — your formula ports as-is.

Try DVAR in the playground

Edit the example — nothing to install.

Preloaded with the DVAR formula from Example 1 — change anything and watch it respond.

Loading the editor…

Related functions

More ways Excel gets this done.