Syntax
CHIDIST(x, deg_freedom)
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
| x | Parameter of the CHIDIST function. |
| deg_freedom | Parameter of the CHIDIST function. |
Examples
P-value for independence test
Formula
=CHIDIST(7.82, 3)
Returns ~0.0499. A chi-squared value of 7.82 with 3 df gives a p-value right at the 5% significance threshold.
Goodness-of-fit p-value
Formula
=CHIDIST(15.5, 5)
Returns ~0.0085. Highly significant — the observed frequencies differ substantially from expected frequencies.
Non-significant result
Formula
=CHIDIST(2.3, 4)
Returns ~0.6809. A p-value of 68% provides no evidence to reject the null hypothesis.
Common Errors
#NUM!
x must be non-negative and degrees of freedom must be a positive integer.
#VALUE!
Occurs when arguments are non-numeric.
Tips
Use CHISQ.DIST.RT instead
CHIDIST is the compatibility version. CHISQ.DIST.RT is the modern equivalent that returns the same right-tailed probability.
Direct p-value
CHIDIST returns the p-value directly for most chi-squared tests. Compare it to your significance level (usually 0.05) — if CHIDIST result < alpha, the result is significant.
Right-tail only
CHIDIST always returns the right-tail probability. For the left-tail (rare, but used in variance tests), use 1 - CHIDIST(x, df) or CHISQ.DIST(x, df, TRUE).
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