MAX

• How to use MAX formula?
• Examples of using MAX formula
• MAX formula not working?
• Similar formulas to MAX

Usage

Use the MAX formula with the syntax shown below, it has 1 required parameter and 1 optional parameter:

=MAX(value1, [value2, ...])

1. value1 (required):
   The first value or range of cells to evaluate.
2. value2, ... (optional):
   Additional values or ranges of cells to evaluate. You can include up to 30 arguments.

Examples

Finding the highest test score

You have a list of test scores and you want to find the highest score. Use the MAX function to return the highest value in the range of scores.

Calculating maximum sales

You have a table of sales data and you want to find the highest sales amount. Use the MAX function to return the highest value in the sales column.

Determining maximum inventory level

You have a list of inventory levels and you want to find the maximum inventory level. Use the MAX function to return the highest inventory level.

Common Mistakes

Using non-numeric values as arguments

The MAX formula only works with numeric values. If non-numeric values are used as arguments, the formula will return an error. To fix this mistake, ensure that all arguments are numeric values.

Not providing any arguments

If no arguments are provided, the MAX formula will return an error. To fix this mistake, ensure that at least one argument is provided.

Providing too many arguments

If more arguments than necessary are provided, the MAX formula will still only evaluate the maximum value of the first set of arguments. To fix this mistake, ensure that only the necessary arguments are provided.

Using a range as an argument

The MAX formula does not work with ranges as arguments. If a range is used, the formula will return an error. To fix this mistake, ensure that individual cell references are used as arguments.

Forgetting to separate arguments with commas

Each argument in the MAX formula must be separated by a comma. If arguments are not separated properly, the formula will return an error. To fix this mistake, ensure that commas are used to separate arguments.

Related Formulas

The following functions are similar to MAX or are often used with it in a formula:

• MIN

  The MIN formula is a statistical function that returns the smallest value in a set of numbers. It is commonly used to find the minimum value from a range of cells or a list of values.

• AVERAGE

  The AVERAGE function calculates the average (arithmetic mean) of the values passed to it. It is commonly used to find the average of a range of cells containing numerical data.

• SUM

  The SUM function in Google Sheets adds up a range of numbers. This function is most commonly used to sum the values in a range of cells.

• COUNT

  The COUNT formula returns the number of numeric values within a specified range of cells. It is commonly used to count the number of entries in a given range that meet specific criteria, such as counting the number of sales above a certain threshold.

Learn More

You can learn more about the MAX Google Sheets function on Google Support.