How to Subtract Dates in Excel

If you work with dates in Excel, you’ll eventually need to know how to subtract them. Whether you’re trying to calculate someone’s age or the number of days between two dates, subtracting dates in Excel is easy to do. In this article, we’ll show you how to subtract dates in Excel, using both the DATE function and the subtraction operator.

How to Subtract Dates in Excel

Step-by-step guide

Assuming you have two dates in different cells, say A1 and B1, and you want to subtract B1 from A1 to get the number of days between the two dates, you would use the following formula: =A1-B1. This will give you the difference in days between the two dates.

If you want to get the difference in another unit of time, such as hours, you would use the following formula: =A1*24-B1*24. This will give you the difference in hours between the two dates. To get the difference in minutes, you would use the formula: =A1*1440-B1*1440.

Tips and tricks

When it comes to subtracting dates in Excel, there are a few different ways you can go about it. The most important thing is to make sure that your data is formatted correctly – otherwise, you could end up with incorrect results.

One way to subtract dates is to use the DATEDIF function. This function takes two dates as arguments and returns the number of days, months, or years between them. For example, if you wanted to know how many days there were between two dates, you would use the DATEDIF function like this:

=DATEDIF(A1,A2,”d”)

In this example, A1 and A2 are the cells containing the two dates. The “d” argument tells the function to return the number of days between the two dates.

Another way to subtract dates is to use the DAYS function. This function takes two dates as arguments and returns the number of days between them. For example, if you wanted to know how many days there were between two dates, you would use the DAYS function like this:

=DAYS(A1,A2)

In this example, A1 and A2 are the cells containing the two dates.

You can also subtract dates by using the minus (-) operator. For example, if you wanted to know how many days there were between two dates, you could use a formula like this:

=A1-A2

In this example, A1 and A2 are the cells containing the two dates. The minus (-) operator subtracts the second date from the first and returns the number of days between them.

Whichever method you choose, just make sure that your data is formatted correctly – otherwise, you could end up with incorrect results.

Common mistakes

One common mistake people make when subtracting dates in Excel is forgetting to account for leap years. If you’re subtracting dates that span a leap year, you need to be sure to add an extra day to account for the leap year.

Another common mistake is forgetting to account for time zones. If you’re subtracting dates that span multiple time zones, you need to be sure to convert the dates to the same time zone before subtracting them.

Finally, another common mistake is forgetting to account for daylight savings time. If you’re subtracting dates that span a daylight savings time change, you need to be sure to add or subtract an hour to account for the change.

Conclusion

To subtract dates in Excel, simply use the minus sign (-). For example, if you want to subtract two dates in cells A1 and A2, you would type “=A1-A2” into cell A3. You can also use the DATE function to subtract dates, by entering the DATE function followed by the minus sign and the number of days you want to subtract. For example, to subtract 10 days from a date in cell A1, you would type “=DATE(A1,-10)”.