How to find the root of a number

by | Apr 11, 2018 | Excel Tips & Tricks

How to find the root of a number

Algebraically, the nth root of a number can be calculated by using 1/n for its power. You can always use caret symbol (^) to find a certain power of a number, but doing this with a formula can be easier to read and identify in nested formula sets.

Syntax

=POWER(base number, 1 / how many times the base number will be multiplied by itself)

Steps

  1. Begin by typing =POWER(
  2. Select or type in the range reference that contains the base number (i.e. B5)
  3. Type in 1/ and then the range reference that contains the number for the root power (i.e C5)
  4. Type in ) and press Enter to complete the formula

How

Here, we're going to utilize the POWER function to find a certain root of a number. This function gets 2 arguments. The first one is the base number (i.e. B3), and the second is the root power (i.e. 1/C3). For example, =POWER(64,2) means √64 which is equal to 8.

=POWER(B5,1/C3)