SQRT function

This article describes the formula syntax and usage of the SQRT function in Microsoft Excel.

Description

Returns a positive square root.

Syntax

SQRT(number)

The SQRT function syntax has the following arguments:

• Number    Required. The number for which you want the square root.

Remark

If number is negative, SQRT returns the #NUM! error value.

Example

Copy the example data in the following table, and paste it in cell A1 of a new Excel worksheet. For formulas to show results, select them, press F2, and then press Enter. If you need to, you can adjust the column widths to see all the data.

Data
-16
Formula	Description	Result
=SQRT(16)	Square root of 16.	4
=SQRT(A2)	Square root of -16. Because the number is negative, the #NUM! error message is returned.	#NUM!
=SQRT(ABS(A2))	Avoiding the #NUM! error message by first using the ABS function to find the absolute value of -16 and then finding the square root.	4