Round to the Nearest X

Excel Formulas › Round

All versionsROUNDMROUND

ROUND rounds to a number of decimal places; MROUND rounds to the nearest multiple of any value — nearest 5 cents, nearest 50, nearest quarter hour. Between them they cover almost every rounding need.

Quick formula: to round A2 to 2 decimals, or to the nearest 25:
=ROUND(A2, 2) // 2 decimal places =MROUND(A2, 25) // nearest multiple of 25
ROUND’s second argument is decimal places; MROUND’s is the multiple to snap to.

Functions used (tap for the full reference guide):

ROUNDMROUND

The example

The same value rounded different ways.

ABC
1ValueROUND(,2)MROUND(,25)
286.47386.4775
3112.50112.50125

The formula

Two common forms:

=ROUND(A2, 2) → 86.47 =MROUND(A2, 25) → 75

How it works

Pick the function by what you’re snapping to:

  1. ROUND(A2, 2) keeps 2 decimal places — 86.473 becomes 86.47. Use a negative second argument to round left of the decimal: ROUND(A2, -1) rounds to the nearest 10.
  2. MROUND(A2, 25) snaps to the nearest multiple of 25 — 86.473 is closer to 75 than 100, so it returns 75.
  3. Both round half away from zero (5 rounds up), unlike banker’s rounding.

Rounding for display vs for math. Number formatting only changes what you see — the underlying value is unchanged. ROUND changes the actual stored value, which matters when later formulas use it.

Try it: interactive demo

Live demo

Enter a value and choose how to round it.

Result:

Variations

Round to the nearest 10 / 100

Use a negative decimal count with ROUND:

=ROUND(A2, -1) // nearest 10 =ROUND(A2, -2) // nearest 100

Round time to the nearest 15 minutes

MROUND with a time value:

=MROUND(A2, "0:15")

Price ending in .99

Round down to a whole dollar, then subtract a cent:

=ROUNDDOWN(A2,0) - 0.01

Pitfalls & errors

Formatting isn’t rounding. Showing 2 decimals with cell formatting leaves the true value full-precision; sums can then look “wrong” by a cent. Use ROUND when the stored value must match what’s shown.

MROUND #NUM! The value and the multiple must have the same sign. =MROUND(-10, 3) errors; use MROUND(-10, -3).

ROUND vs ROUNDUP/ROUNDDOWN. ROUND goes to the nearest; if you always need to go up or down regardless, use ROUNDUP or ROUNDDOWN instead.

Practice workbook

📊
Download the free Round to the Nearest X practice workbook
Values with live ROUND and MROUND at several precisions, the nearest-10/100 and time-rounding variants, plus 4 challenges with answers. No sign-up required.

Frequently asked questions

How do I round to the nearest number in Excel?
Use ROUND for decimal places, e.g. =ROUND(A2, 2), or a negative count like =ROUND(A2, -1) for the nearest 10. Use =MROUND(A2, 25) to round to the nearest multiple of 25.
What's the difference between ROUND and MROUND?
ROUND rounds to a number of decimal places (or powers of ten with a negative argument). MROUND rounds to the nearest multiple of any value you specify, like 5, 25, or 0.05.
Why does my total look off by a penny after rounding?
You probably rounded the display with formatting, not the value. Sums use the full-precision numbers. Wrap the values in ROUND so the stored amounts match what's shown.

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Related formulas: Round up or down · Percent change · Weighted average

Function references: ROUND · MROUND