Which function should be used to add or subtract values based on a specified percentage?

The SUMIF function is used to sum values in a range that meet a specific criterion. This criterion can be expressed in relation to a percentage. For example, the formula =SUMIF(A1:A10, ">50%") would sum all the values in the range A1:A10 that are greater than 0.5. This directly addresses the "add values based on a specified percentage" part of the question. While no single function listed performs both addition and subtraction in this context, SUMIF is the only one that performs conditional summation based on criteria, which can include percentages.

A. AVERAGEIF: This function calculates the conditional average of values that meet a specific criterion; it does not sum or subtract them.

C. PMT: This is a specialized financial function for calculating loan payments based on an interest rate (a percentage), not for general conditional arithmetic.

D. PERCENTILE: This statistical function finds the value at a specific percentage rank within a dataset (e.g., the 90th percentile). It does not add or subtract values.

1. Microsoft 365 Support Documentation. The official documentation for the SUMIF function states its purpose is to "sum the values in a range that meet criteria that you specify." The examples demonstrate its use with logical operators

which can be applied to percentage criteria.

Source: Microsoft Corporation. (n.d.). SUMIF function. Microsoft 365 Support. Retrieved from https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/sumif-function-169b8c99-c05c-4483-a712-1697a653039b

2. Microsoft 365 Support Documentation. The documentation for the PERCENTILE.INC function clarifies that it "Returns the k-th percentile of values in a range

where k is in the range 0..1

inclusive

" confirming its purpose is for statistical ranking

not arithmetic operations like adding or subtracting.

Source: Microsoft Corporation. (n.d.). PERCENTILE.INC function. Microsoft 365 Support. Retrieved from https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/percentile-inc-function-680f9539-45eb-410b-9953-74f40290a86b

3. University of Washington

Foster School of Business. Course materials for "Excel for Business" (e.g.

OPMGT 301) describe the use of conditional functions. They explain that SUMIF is used for "summing cells in a range that meet a single criterion

" distinguishing it from arithmetic formulas used for increasing or decreasing a value by a percentage.

Source: Foster School of Business. (n.d.). Excel 2016: Core Part 3: Formulas and Functions. University of Washington. (Specific course materials illustrate the distinct applications of SUMIF vs. basic percentage calculations).