I need help figuring out how to calculate a percentage of a number in Google Sheets. Here’s what I’m trying to do:
For example, if someone earns $15 and I put that in column A, I want column C to automatically show what 5% of $15 equals. What formula should I use to make this work?
just use =A1*(B1/100) in column C. the parentheses make it clear what’s going on. your $15 example gives you $0.75 automatically. copy it down and you’re done - no need to format percentages first like some ppl suggest.
Here’s another way: format column B as decimals first (divide by 100), then just use =A1*B1 in column C. So you’d put 0.05 in B1 instead of 5. Makes the formula cleaner and way easier to follow. I like this method better - fewer calculation steps and it’s more intuitive when you’re working with multiple percentage rates. Format column C as currency if you’re dealing with money like your $15 example. Same result, but the workflow’s much smoother when you scale up to bigger datasets.
To calculate a percentage of a number in Google Sheets, use =A1*B1/100 in column C. This multiplies your total (column A) by the percentage (column B), then divides by 100. So if A1 is 15 and B1 is 5, you’ll get 0.75 in C1 (which is 75 cents). Just drag the formula down to other rows when you need it. Works great for commission calculations too.