Operators

Overview

Operators are the basic building blocks used in formulas to combine values, compare results, and create conditions. They are often used directly (for example arithmetic) and inside functions (for example comparisons inside IF(...)).

Use this section to understand operator behavior and jump to the operator reference pages.

Operator precedence (quick rule)

• Use parentheses to make intent explicit.

• Without parentheses, * and / are evaluated before + and -.

• Functions evaluate inside out, wrap intermediate steps if readability matters.

• Shape rule of thumb: + and − align to shared dimensions, while * and / apply across the combined dimension set.

Start here if…

• You want to calculate numeric results → start with Arithmetic operators

• You want to build a condition → start with Comparisons & boolean logic

• You’re writing conditions for IF → also see Logical functions in the function categories
  

What you’ll find in this section

• Arithmetic operators: combine numeric values

  • Addition (+): sum values

  • Subtraction (-): subtract values

  • Multiplication (*): multiply values

  • Division (/): divide values

• Comparisons & boolean logic: evaluate and combine conditions

  • Comparisons: equal =, not equal !=, greater >, greater than equal >=, less <, less than equal <=

  • Boolean logic: AND, NOT, OR, XOR, TRUE, FALSE

  • These are most commonly used inside IF(...) conditions.

Related sections

• Formula basics parentheses, evaluation order, notation

• Function catalog functions used together with operators

• Logical functions IF and condition-building functions

• Troubleshooting guide common pitfalls with comparisons and missing values