How to use the edate function
The edate function is a very useful function that helps us calculate the relative date offset between two dates. Using the edate function, we can easily calculate the date after the specified number of months, starting from a date. The following describes how to use the edate function in detail.
1. Function syntax.
The syntax of the edate function is as follows:
edate(start_date, months)
The start date indicates the start date and the months indicates the number of months to be added. It should be noted that the months parameter can be positive or negative, if it is positive, it means that the corresponding number of months is added after the current date; If it is negative, it means that the corresponding number of months is subtracted before the current date.
2. Examples of use.
1.Calculate the date of a specific month after the current date.
Suppose we want to calculate the date after 3 months after the current date, we can use the following formula:
edate(today(),3)
The today() function returns the current date, and 3 indicates the number of months to be added. Once the formula is executed, the date after 3 months after the current date will be returned.
2.Calculate the date of a specific month before the current date.
Suppose we want to calculate the date 6 months before the current date, we can use the following formula:
edate(today(),6)
Of these, -6 means to subtract 6 months. When the formula is executed, the date 6 months before the current date will be returned.
3.Calculate the date after a specific month for a specific day.
Suppose we want to calculate the date after 6 months after January 1, 2020, we can use the following formula:
edate(date(2020,1,1), 6)
date(2020,1,1) indicates January 1, 2020, and 6 indicates the number of months to be added. After executing the formula, the date 6 months after January 1, 2020, i.e., July 1, 2020, will be returned.
3. Precautions.
When using the edate function, you need to pay attention to the following points:
1.The start date parameter must be a valid date, otherwise the function will return an incorrect value.
2.The months parameter can be a decimal that represents the decimal part of the number of months to be added. For example, 05 means half a month. It should be noted that if the months parameter is a decimal, you must use an absolute reference or put it in parentheses, otherwise excel may interpret it as a percentage.
3.If the start date parameter plus the number of months exceeds the maximum date (2958465), the function will return the maximum date. Therefore, when using the edate function, you need to be careful not to exceed the maximum date range.