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rounding issue

  1. #1
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    Lightbulb rounding issue

    Hello,

    I encountered rounding issue in excel and I can't find any solution to this problem on any website. Perhaps I'm doing something wrong?

    I have a set of data that I multiply by a percantage and then do the rounding to 2 decimal points. This changes the total of the data but I want to keep the total the same!

    Eg.

    Total to be paid to customers: 12021.30

    Service x to get 0.46% * 12021.30
    Service y to get 0.09% * 12021.30
    Service z to get 0.37% * 12021.30

    and so on...

    The data needs to be rounded to 2 decimal points in order to be able to be uploaded into the financial system and the total of all the 'service' entries needs to match the payment amount which is 12021.30. Each time I use the =round,2 formula the total is off by a few cents.

    What is the best solution to this problem?

  2. #2
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    Re: rounding issue

    I don't know that you are doing anything "wrong." This is just an inherent outcome of rounding intermediate calculations. If you must round the intermediate calculations to the nearest penny, then your total will often be off by a few pennies.

    I don't know if there is a "best solution" for this problem. It probably starts with whatever "best practices" govern this choice by your organization or by professional accountants. As I am not and never have been in accounting, I have no idea what best practices might be in place for deciding how to handle the extra/lost pennies that are a natural outgrowth of rounding each intermediate result to the nearest penny. A few of our regulars seem to know their way around accounting, they may have some thoughts regarding best practices. Even then, the final choice of best practice might come down to your (and/or your employer's) choices around what to do with those pennies.

    In the event no one with an opinion steps in, if you can help us understand what you (or your employer) wants to have happen to those lost/extra pennies, we can help program that practice into the spreadsheet. I don't think we can help much with the spreadsheet programming until you (or someone else) proposes an algorithm for what to do with the lost/extra pennies.
    Quote Originally Posted by shg
    Mathematics is the native language of the natural world. Just trying to become literate.

  3. #3
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    Re: rounding issue

    Please upload a excel-file with data what you have and what you want to have.
    Willem
    English is not my native language sorry for errors
    Please correct me if I'm completely wrong

  4. #4
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    Re: rounding issue

    If you want to account for the missing pennies, you can use a SUM formula to add up all the percentage totals, then subtract that from your original balance. Something like:

    Service x to get 0.46% * 12021.30
    Service y to get 0.09% * 12021.30
    Service z to get= 12021.30 - SUM(Totals from x and y)

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    Forum Guru HansDouwe's Avatar
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    Re: rounding issue

    I encountered rounding issue in excel ........ then do the rounding to 2 decimal points.
    This changes the total of the data but I want to keep the total the same!
    The occurrence of this kind of rounding difference has nothing to do with Excel.
    Even if you calculate it on paper without Excel, these rounding differences arise.

    For example
    7,5% van 1,00 = 0,075 (0,08)
    7,5% van 1,00 = 0,075 (0,08)

    Total:
    7,5% van 2,00 = 0,15 (0,16)

    You have the choice:
    Either you round each intermediate result to 2 decimal places and accept a rounding difference in the total,
    or you do not round the intermediate results (but you only show 2 decimal places) and accept that the addition does not seem to be correct.

  7. #7
    Forum Guru HansDouwe's Avatar
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    Re: rounding issue

    If you indicate how you want to solve these kinds of issues (of post #6) on paper (without Excel), you can then imitate this solution in Excel.

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