Summation Function Sums innacurately

[Guest]

I have a spreadsheet which lists dollar amounts deducted from customer
checks. Each dollar amount contains two decimal places. When I sum the list
of dollar amounts, I never receive the ACTUAL amount. Sometimes it is two
cents over, 5 cents under, etc. For example, one column has a total of
$4,375.45 of deductions, but when I use the summation formula, the excel
calculates the amount to be $4,375.43...which is two cents off. How do I get
the exact summation of a list of numbers with 2 decimal places? I am using
Excel 2002.

Thank you,
Bajer Design

 

[Niek Otten]

Displaying just 2 decimals doesn't change the accuracy with which Excel
keeps the underlying number. So use either ROUND() functions, or apply
Tools>Options>Calculation, check Precision as displayed.
The latter is often a good idea for financial spreadsheets, but read HELP
first to understand the implications.

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Kind Regards,

Niek Otten

Microsoft MVP - Excel