What is the COUNTIF Function
The COUNTIF function counts how many cells in a range meet a condition you specify. It is one of the most used functions for tallying categories, flags, or threshold values. The condition can be text, a number, a comparison, or a wildcard pattern.
Formula: =COUNTIF(range, criteria)
Practical Example 1
Column C contains grades A, B, C, A, B, A, C, A, D, B. You want the count of A grades.
Type: =COUNTIF(C2:C11, A)
Result: 5
Practical Example 2
Count orders above 1000 in column D.
Type: =COUNTIF(D2:D100, >1000)
Result: the number of orders above 1000
Practical Example 3
Count product names starting with Pen.
Type: =COUNTIF(A2:A100, Pen*)
Result: the number of products starting with Pen
Practical Example 4
Count blank cells using COUNTIF.
Type: =COUNTIF(A2:A100, )
Result: the number of blank cells
When to Use It
COUNTIF is used for grade distribution in education, for counting orders above a threshold in sales, for attendance counting in HR, for category counting in inventory, and for any report that needs conditional counting.