How to insert a formula in Word

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Use templates or manually type fractions, radical expressions and more.

There are no formula tools in Word Online. Therefore, you will need the desktop version of the editor. These instructions are based on the Windows example, but the steps are the same in Word for macOS.

How to insert a template formula in Word

Word has a set of built-in pre-built equations. Among them are formulas for the area of a triangle and a circle, Newton's binomial, trigonometric identities, and other expressions. You can insert them without manually typing anything.

1. Click "Insert" and click the arrow next to the Equation tool (or Formula on macOS).

2. Select the required formula from the list that appears. If there isn't one here, hover over Additional Equations From Office.com and look in the alternate list that appears on the screen. Additional formulas are only available on Windows.

3. If necessary, click on the inserted formula and edit it.

How to create your own formula in Word

If the required formula is not among the templates, you can assemble your equation in a special constructor using the library of mathematical signs.

1. Click Insert → Equation (Formula on macOS).

2. Use the tools in the "Design" menu that opens. Thanks to them, you can insert and edit various mathematical symbols and structures: matrices, fractions, logarithms, brackets, roots, diacritics, integrals, and so on.

How to save your formula as a template

So that in the future you do not have to rebuild the formula already created in the constructor, you can add it to the list of templates. This will allow you to insert it just like other template equations.

1. Click on the three dots in the corner of the desired formula to select it.

2. Click Insert, click the arrow next to the Equation tool (Formula on macOS) and choose Save Selection To Equation Gallery.

3. In the menu that opens, set the parameters of the formula: name, category (for example, "Algebra" or "Physics") and, if necessary, a description. When done, click OK.

The added formula will appear in the list of template equations in the menu "Insert" → "Equation" ("Formula" in macOS), from where it can be inserted into the document.

How to insert a formula into a table in Word

Word also supports smart formulas that can perform simple manipulations on data in table cells. For example, they can be used to calculate the sum of numbers or find the largest number.

1. Fill in the table with numbers.

2. Place the cursor in the cell where you want to see the calculation result.

3. On the toolbar, click Layout (next to the table design tab) and select Formula.

4. When the menu with formula parameters opens, in the Insert Function field, select the operator you want. For example, SUM () calculates the sum of the numbers in cells, AVERAGE () finds the arithmetic mean, and MIN () and MAX () determine the smallest and largest numbers, respectively. For a complete list of supported operators with descriptions, see Word Help.

5. In the "Formula" box, specify the location of the numbers to which you want to apply the selected operator. This can be done using special arguments. Each of them selects all numbers in a certain direction relative to the cell with the result: RIGHT - to the right, LEFT - to the left, BELOW - below and ABOVE - above. To avoid errors, fill in the blank cells that are taken into account in the calculation with zeros.

For example, let's write a formula that calculates the sum of all numbers located to the left and below relative to the cell with the result, using the SUM () operator and the LEFT and BELOW arguments:

Arguments are entered in parentheses after the operator. They can be combined two at a time, separated by semicolons. The result is displayed in the previously selected cell:

As you may have noticed, working with such formulas is not very convenient. And their functionality is limited and significantly inferior to the capabilities of Excel. Instead, you can perform simple math operations right in your text editor.