Syntax
MAX(value1, [value2, ...])
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
| value1 | Parameter of the MAX function. |
| [value2 | (Optional.) Parameter of the MAX function. |
| ...] | Parameter of the MAX function. |
Examples
Find the highest sale
Formula
=MAX(C2:C500)
Returns: 45,200 — the largest sales amount in the entire range
Find the latest date
Formula
=MAX(D2:D100)
Returns: 2024-12-15 — the most recent date (dates are numbers internally, so MAX works)
Find highest score per criteria
Formula
=MAXIFS(C2:C100, A2:A100, "Math")
Returns: 98 — the highest score specifically in Math (requires MAXIFS)
Common Errors
Returns 0
The range contains no numbers, only text or blanks. MAX returns 0 when there are no numeric values.
#VALUE!
You passed a text value directly to MAX. Use MAX on a range (which ignores text) rather than individual text cells.
Tips
Second highest value
Use =LARGE(range, 2) for the second largest, =LARGE(range, 3) for third largest, etc.
Highlight the max
Use conditional formatting with the formula =B2=MAX($B$2:$B$100) to highlight the cell containing the maximum value.
MAX with dates
MAX works on dates since they are stored as numbers. =MAX(A:A) gives the latest date in column A.
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