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ROUND

Rounds a number to a specified number of digits.

Quick Example​

=ROUND(3.14159, 2)

Returns 3.14.

Syntax​

=ROUND(number, num_digits)

Arguments​

  • number (required): The number you want to round
  • num_digits (optional): The number of digits to which you want to round. Defaults to 0 if omitted.

Examples​

Round to Integer​

=ROUND(3.7)

Returns 4 (rounds to nearest whole number)

Round to Two Decimal Places​

=ROUND(3.14159, 2)

Returns 3.14

Round to Tens​

=ROUND(1234, -1)

Returns 1230 (rounds to nearest 10)

Round to Hundreds​

=ROUND(1567, -2)

Returns 1600 (rounds to nearest 100)

Round Negative Numbers​

=ROUND(-3.7, 0)

Returns -4 (rounds away from zero)

Financial Rounding​

=ROUND(123.456, 2)

Returns 123.46 (useful for currency)

How It Works​

Rounding Direction​

ROUND uses standard "round half up" logic:

  • 0.5 and above rounds up
  • Below 0.5 rounds down

Examples:

=ROUND(2.5, 0)  // Returns 3
=ROUND(2.4, 0)  // Returns 2
=ROUND(2.6, 0)  // Returns 3

Positive num_digits​

Rounds to decimal places to the right of the decimal point:

=ROUND(3.14159, 0)  // Returns 3
=ROUND(3.14159, 1)  // Returns 3.1
=ROUND(3.14159, 2)  // Returns 3.14
=ROUND(3.14159, 3)  // Returns 3.142

Negative num_digits​

Rounds to the left of the decimal point:

=ROUND(1234.56, 0)   // Returns 1235
=ROUND(1234.56, -1)  // Returns 1230
=ROUND(1234.56, -2)  // Returns 1200
=ROUND(1234.56, -3)  // Returns 1000

Common Use Cases​

Currency Rounding​

=ROUND(Price * Quantity, 2)

Ensure currency values have exactly 2 decimal places

Grade Rounding​

=ROUND(Average_Score, 0)

Round grades to whole numbers

Display Friendly Numbers​

=ROUND(Population, -3)

Round population to thousands for readability

Statistical Reporting​

=ROUND(AVERAGE(A1:A100), 1)

Round average to one decimal place

Tax Calculations​

=ROUND(Subtotal * 0.08, 2)

Calculate tax rounded to cents

Error Handling​

Error Propagation​

If any argument contains an error, ROUND returns that error:

=ROUND(#DIV/0!, 2)

Returns #DIV/0!

Common Errors​

ErrorCauseSolution
#VALUE!Non-numeric argument or multi-cell rangeEnsure arguments are numbers
#REF!Invalid cell referenceVerify cell reference exists
#NAME?Function name misspelledCheck spelling: =ROUND not =ROUNDING

Single Cell References​

=ROUND(A1, 2)

If A1 is a multi-cell range, returns #VALUE!

Technical Details​

Implementation Notes​

  • Requires 1 or 2 arguments
  • num_digits defaults to 0 if omitted
  • Uses standard rounding algorithm
  • Handles both positive and negative num_digits
  • Works with single values or single-cell references

Rounding Algorithm​

For positive num_digits:

result = round(number * 10^num_digits) / 10^num_digits

For negative num_digits:

result = round(number / 10^(-num_digits)) * 10^(-num_digits)

Precision Considerations​

Floating-point arithmetic may introduce tiny rounding errors:

=ROUND(2.675, 2)

May return 2.67 or 2.68 depending on floating-point representation

Comparison: ROUND vs ROUNDUP​

ROUND - Standard Rounding​

=ROUND(2.4, 0)  // Returns 2
=ROUND(2.5, 0)  // Returns 3
=ROUND(2.6, 0)  // Returns 3

ROUNDUP - Always Round Away from Zero​

=ROUNDUP(2.1, 0)  // Returns 3
=ROUNDUP(2.5, 0)  // Returns 3
=ROUNDUP(2.9, 0)  // Returns 3

Advanced Examples​

Round to Nearest Quarter​

=ROUND(A1*4, 0)/4

Rounds to nearest 0.25 (e.g., 3.7 → 3.75)

Round Time to Nearest 15 Minutes​

=ROUND(A1*96, 0)/96

Rounds time values to nearest 15-minute interval

Conditional Rounding​

=IF(A1>=100, ROUND(A1, 0), ROUND(A1, 2))

Round large numbers to integers, small numbers to 2 decimals

  • ROUNDUP - Always round away from zero