Averaging Noncontiguous Cells That Contain Some Zero Values

Q: Here’s my problem: I need to calculate the average for a bunch of cells that not only are not contiguous but some contain zero values, and I don’t want them to affect the results. Do you have any ideas?

A: It is a little tricky. The solution, as you’ll see, lies in the denominator, where we need to eliminate the effect of the zero values. Once we do that, the rest falls into place. For example, if the target cells are A1, C1, E1 and G1, the averaging formula would be:

=(A1+C1+E1+G1)/((A1<>0)+(C1<>0)+(E1<>0)+(G1<>0))

By canceling all the cells that produce zero values, we obtain the correct average.

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