Practical guide

How to Count Matching Cells With COUNTIF

COUNTIF counts cells in one range that meet one condition. For multiple simultaneous conditions, use COUNTIFS instead.

What to do

Count an exact word with =COUNTIF(A2:A100,"Paid"). Text criteria are placed in quotation marks.
Count values above a threshold with =COUNTIF(B2:B100,">100"). Join a comparison operator to a cell reference using ">"&D2.
Use * as a wildcard for any number of characters and ? for one character, such as =COUNTIF(A2:A100,"INV-*").
Check the source for leading or trailing spaces if a count is lower than expected.

COUNTIF is not case-sensitive for ordinary text matches.
A criterion that contains a literal asterisk or question mark requires a tilde escape, such as "~*".

Use COUNTIF to count cells matching a text label, number, or comparison condition.

=COUNTIF(range, criteria)

=COUNTIF(D2:D5,"Paid")

Example result: 3.

Item	Region	Sales	Status
Widget	North	120	Paid
Cable	South	80	Paid
Widget	North	200	Pending
Desk	North	150	Paid

Count how many orders have been marked Paid in a status column.

Using an ordinary equals comparison for criteria that include an operator; comparison criteria need quotes.
Expecting COUNTIF to distinguish letter case; regular text matching is not case-sensitive.

Use COUNTIFS for multiple conditions. Use COUNTA to count nonblank cells without a condition.

COUNTIF is available in current Excel versions. Wildcards * and ? match text patterns; a tilde escapes a literal wildcard.

Does COUNTIF count blank cells?

Use an empty-string criterion to count blanks, or COUNTBLANK for a direct blank-cell count.

How do I count values greater than a cell value?

Use a criterion such as ">"&F2 so the operator is combined with the cell reference.