Incorrect SUM Values in Excel Spreadsheets

[Guest]

My spreadsheet is not returning a correct value for a column of amounts added
up using the SUM formula. There is nothing untoward in the column, it is a
straight forward addition of anything from 2 to 50 plus cells, but the result
is always £0.01 out. Anyone know why?

 

[Guest]

Julie,

It's probably due to the binary-decimal conversions inherent in the Excel
program. Please read the post called "Comparing Numbers" dated 01/03/2005 as
well as the "Crossfooting" post dated 04/29/2004 at the following site for a
good explanation:

http://www.dicks-blog.com/

 

[Jerry W. Lewis]

Results of calculations may have more decimal places than the selected
cell format displays. For instance, if three cells each contain =1/3,
their sum will be 1 even though a fixed 2 decimal place format only
displays 0.33 for each cell. If this is undesirable, you can either use
the ROUND() function to limit the number of decimal places on specific
formulas, or you can use Tools|Options|Calculation and check Precision
as displayed to automatically round all calculations to the displayed
precision.

Jerry