Google Sheets just got even more powerful with the addition of the XOR logical function. If you’re wondering how to use XOR in Google Sheets and what sets it apart from the logical OR function, you’re in the right place. Get ready to unlock the full potential of Google Sheets with this exciting new feature.
Understanding the XOR Function
Before we dive into the practicalities, let’s take a moment to understand what XOR, or exclusive OR, means. The XOR function in Google Sheets allows you to perform exclusive OR operations on logical expressions.
So what does exclusive OR really mean? Let’s look at an example. Imagine you have two cells with the following values:
A1 = 5
A2 = 20
Now, consider the following formula:
=xor(A1=10,A2=20)The result of this formula will be TRUE. But if you change the value in cell A1 to 10, you’ll see that the formula now returns FALSE. Why is that?
XOR Returns TRUE if an odd number of arguments are TRUE. This means that if an odd number of the logical expressions within the XOR function are evaluated as TRUE, the result will be TRUE. Otherwise, it will be FALSE.
To illustrate this concept further, let’s take a look at some additional examples:
In each formula listed in column E, count the number of TRUE arguments. Notice that in all cases, the number of TRUE arguments is odd, resulting in a TRUE output.
The Difference Between XOR and OR
Now, you might be wondering how XOR differs from the OR function in Google Sheets. If you were to replace XOR with OR in the previous examples, the result would be the same.
The key distinction is that the OR function doesn’t consider the total number of logical expressions evaluated as TRUE. It simply checks if any of the provided arguments are logically true.
Consider this scenario: you have the number 5 in cells A1, B1, C1, and D1. Now, take a look at these two formulas:
=or(A1=5,B1=5,C1=5,D1=5)Result: TRUE
=xor(A1=5,B1=5,C1=5,D1=5)Result: FALSE
In this case, the XOR formula returns FALSE because there is an even number of arguments that evaluate to TRUE. For more information, refer to the Docs Editors help article on XOR.
While I don’t have a specific real-life example to share, you can explore the practical use of XOR gates by referring to the XOR Gate Wikipedia article. It provides valuable insights into the applications of XOR in various fields.
With this tutorial, you now have the knowledge and expertise to utilize the XOR function in Google Sheets effectively. Say goodbye to manual calculations and embrace the power of logical operations in your spreadsheets.
Keep exploring and discovering new features in Google Sheets to simplify your workflow. And remember, if you ever need assistance, Crawlan.com is here to guide you on your journey to spreadsheet mastery. Happy XOR-ing!
