Mastering Year-on-Year Growth Calculation in Excel- A Comprehensive Guide

How to Calculate Year on Year Growth in Excel

Calculating year on year (YOY) growth is a fundamental skill in data analysis, especially when you want to understand the performance of a business or investment over time. Excel, being a powerful tool for data analysis, provides several methods to calculate YOY growth. In this article, we will explore different techniques to calculate YOY growth in Excel and provide step-by-step instructions to help you get started.

Method 1: Using the YOYGrowth Function

Excel has a built-in function called YOYGrowth that can calculate the percentage change between two years. To use this function, follow these steps:

1. Open your Excel workbook and navigate to the cell where you want to display the YOY growth.
2. Type the following formula: `=YOYGrowth(start_value, end_value)`.
3. Replace `start_value` with the value from the previous year and `end_value` with the value from the current year.
4. Press Enter, and Excel will automatically calculate the YOY growth percentage.

Example:

Assuming you have the following values in cells A1 and A2:

| Year | Value |
| — | — |
| 2020 | 100 |
| 2021 | 150 |

Enter the following formula in cell A3: `=YOYGrowth(A1, A2)`. Excel will return the YOY growth percentage, which in this case is 50%.

Method 2: Using the Percentage Change Formula

Another way to calculate YOY growth in Excel is by using the percentage change formula. This method is particularly useful when you have data in a table format. Here’s how to do it:

1. Open your Excel workbook and navigate to the cell where you want to display the YOY growth.
2. Type the following formula: `=(end_value – start_value) / start_value 100%`.
3. Replace `end_value` with the value from the current year and `start_value` with the value from the previous year.
4. Press Enter, and Excel will calculate the YOY growth percentage.

Example:

Using the same values from the previous example, enter the following formula in cell A3: `=(A2 – A1) / A1 100%`. Excel will return the YOY growth percentage, which is 50%.

Method 3: Using the INDEX and MATCH Functions

The INDEX and MATCH functions are powerful tools in Excel that can be used to calculate YOY growth in more complex scenarios. For instance, if your data is spread across multiple rows and columns, these functions can help you extract the necessary values for the calculation. Here’s how to use them:

1. Open your Excel workbook and navigate to the cell where you want to display the YOY growth.
2. Type the following formula: `=(MATCH(year, years_column, 0) values_column – MATCH(year – 1, years_column, 0) values_column) / (MATCH(year – 1, years_column, 0) values_column) 100%`.
3. Replace `years_column` with the column containing the years, `values_column` with the column containing the values, and `year` with the current year.
4. Press Enter, and Excel will calculate the YOY growth percentage.

Example:

Assuming you have the following data in columns A and B:

| Year | Value |
| — | — |
| 2020 | 100 |
| 2021 | 150 |
| 2022 | 200 |

Enter the following formula in cell A4: `=(MATCH(2022, A2:A4, 0) B2:B4 – MATCH(2021, A2:A4, 0) B2:B4) / (MATCH(2021, A2:A4, 0) B2:B4) 100%`. Excel will return the YOY growth percentage, which is 50%.

Conclusion

Calculating year on year growth in Excel is a straightforward process, and there are multiple methods to choose from based on your data structure and requirements. By using the YOYGrowth function, percentage change formula, or INDEX and MATCH functions, you can easily analyze your data and gain valuable insights into the performance of your business or investment over time.