Cellwise

Excel guide · 2 min read

How to use COUNTIF greater than in Excel

Put the operator and number together in quotes: =COUNTIF(B2:B9,">80") counts cells above 80. To compare with a cell, join the operator with &: =COUNTIF(B2:B9,">"&E1).

Sample data

Every formula on this page was calculated live against this sheet.

ABCDE
1StudentScoreSubmitted85
2Ava912026-09-28
3Ben762026-10-02
4Cara842026-09-30
5Dev802026-10-05
6Eli672026-10-01
7Fay952026-09-29
8Gus582026-10-03
9Hana882026-10-01

Count values greater than a number

The criteria is a text string, so the whole condition goes inside quotes: ">80". Excel counts every number in the range above 80. Dev's 80 is not counted because it is not greater than 80.

fx=COUNTIF(B2:B9,">80")

Result: 4

Returns 4: Ava, Cara, Fay and Hana.

Greater than or equal to

Use >= to include the boundary. The full set of operators is > , >= , < , <= , = and <> (not equal to).

fx=COUNTIF(B2:B9,">=80")

Result: 5

Returns 5, now including Dev's 80.

Greater than a value in another cell

Keep the operator in quotes and join the cell with &. Writing ">E1" inside the quotes would look for the text E1, not the cell. Now you can change the cut-off in E1 without touching the formula.

fx=COUNTIF(B2:B9,">"&E1)

Result: 3

With 85 in E1, returns 3: Ava, Fay and Hana.

Count dates after a certain date

Dates are numbers to Excel, so the same pattern works. Build the date with DATE so there is no confusion about day and month order. Swap DATE(...) for TODAY() to count anything after today.

fx=COUNTIF(C2:C9,">"&DATE(2026,9,30))

Result: 5

Returns 5 submissions after 30 September 2026.

Count between two values

COUNTIF takes one condition. For a range like "70 to 89", use COUNTIFS with two conditions on the same column. Both must be true for a row to count.

fx=COUNTIFS(B2:B9,">=70",B2:B9,"<90")

Result: 4

Returns 4: Ben, Cara, Dev and Hana.

Greater than the average

The criteria can come from any formula. Join the operator to AVERAGE to count above-average results.

fx=COUNTIF(B2:B9,">"&AVERAGE(B2:B9))

Result: 5

The average is 79.875, so this returns 5.

Common mistakes

Leaving out the quotes

=COUNTIF(B2:B9,>80) is a syntax error. The operator and number must be in quotes: ">80".

Putting the cell inside the quotes

">E1" compares with the text "E1" and returns 0. Use ">"&E1.

Typing dates in the criteria

">30/09/2026" depends on your regional date settings and can be misread. Use ">"&DATE(2026,9,30) or point at a cell holding the date.

Numbers stored as text

COUNTIF with > ignores text cells, so imported numbers that are really text are skipped. Convert them with Data > Text to Columns > Finish.

FAQ

How do I count cells greater than 0 in Excel?

Use =COUNTIF(range,">0"). It skips blanks, zeros, negatives and text.

How do I use COUNTIF with greater than and less than?

Use COUNTIFS with two conditions on the same range, such as =COUNTIFS(B2:B9,">=70",B2:B9,"<90").

Can COUNTIF compare text with greater than?

Yes. ">M" counts text that sorts after "M" alphabetically, ignoring case. It is rarely what you want, but it explains odd results.

How do I count cells less than a number?

Use the less-than operator the same way: =COUNTIF(B2:B9,"<60") counts scores under 60, and "<=" includes the boundary.

How do I sum values greater than a number instead of counting them?

Swap COUNTIF for SUMIF: =SUMIF(B2:B9,">80") adds up the scores above 80. Add a third argument to sum a different column, such as =SUMIF(B2:B9,">80",D2:D9).

Functions used

Keep learning

Updated 2026-10-31