How to use Excel NOT Function (With Examples)

The NOT function in Excel lets you return the opposite of a logical value. For example, if the condition is TRUE, it will return FALSE and vice versa.

The Excel NOT function is used very rarely. It is one of the confusing logical functions for users. So, please make sure to read carefully while I explain you the function using Examples in this article.

Suppose that the students need to score at least 40% marks to pass the exam. There are 10 students in the class. Their names and marks are available in columns A and B, respectively. Our task is to find the number of students who failed.

Our formula would be as follows:

=NOT(B2>=40)

Where B2>=40 is the condition to identify the students who scored equal to or more than 40%. In this case,

The function will return FALSE if the student scored more than 40%
It will return TRUE if the given student couldn’t score equal to or more than 40%

Our desired output is TRUE, which means the given student failed in the given exam.

Syntax

The NOT is a simple function with the following syntax. It is combined with other functions like IF, AND, and OR to create complex formulas in Excel.

=NOT(logical)

Where logical represents conditions. You can use comparison operators to define conditions or criteria.

“=” – Equal To
“<“- Less Than
“<=” – Less Than or Equal To
“>” – Greater Than
“>=” – Greater Than or Equal To
“<>” – Not Equal To

Important Notes:

It does not support wildcards
You may get a #VALUE error if the given condition does not provide a logical or numeric value

How to use the NOT Function in Excel

Download the example spreadsheet used to demonstrate the NOT function in the upcoming section. Practice is the key to success!

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Example 1: Finding non-blank cells using NOT function

Let us start with a simple example. We have employee data as shown in the following image. Their names and bonuses are mentioned in columns A and B, respectively. Our task is to find the employees who got bonuses in the given year.

SIDENOTE: We will combine NOT with the ISBLANK function in Excel. The ISBLANK function returns TRUE if the cell is blank and FALSE if it is not.

Here are the steps,

Select the cell C2
Type =NOT
Double-click on the NOT command
Type ISBLANK
(As ISBLANK is a function in Excel, you will see the popup as shown in the following image)
Next, select the cell manually or type B2
Complete the bracket for the ISBLANK function using )
Do the same for the NOT function using )
Hit the Enter key

Our final formula is as follows,

=NOT(ISBLANK(B2))

Here, I am using conditional formatting to highlight the cells.

Example 2: Combining NOT with OR Function

Our task is to highlight the employees who are not working in the IT and HR departments. Employee names and their departments are available in columns A and B.

Refer to the following image,

Here are the steps,

Select the cell C2
Type =NOT
Select the first option from the popup
Type OR
(As OR is a function in Excel, you will see the following popup)
Choose the first option from the popup
Specify the first condition as B2=“IT”
(Make sure to put double quotation marks)
Type , on your keyboard
Specify the second condition as B2=“Human Resource”
(Make sure to put double quotation marks)
Complete the bracket using ) on your keyword for the OR function
Similarly, use ) again to complete the brackets for NOT function
Press the Enter key

Our final formula is as follows,

=NOT(OR(B2="IT", B2="Human Resources"))

Where,

B2=”IT” condition lets us identify if the employee is from IT department
B2=”Human Resources” condition lets us identify if the employee is from HR department

The results are displayed in the following image,

Example 3: Combining NOT with IF Function

Suppose that we are planning to give a bonus to employees who successfully hit the sales targets. Our sales target was $100,000 for the given month. We will give a 10% bonus on total sales made by the employees if it is greater than the given target.

We have employee names and their sales mentioned in column A and B respectively. Refer to the following image,

But before we start, let us first learn the IF function syntax.

Explained: The IF Function in Excel

The IF is a logical function in Excel. It can test a condition and return values based on whether the condition is satisfied or not.

It has a simple syntax as follows:

=IF(logical_test, [value_if_true], [value_if_false])

Where,

logical_test is used to define the condition to be tested.
value_if_true is an optional argument where you can define the value to return if the condition is satisfied.
value_if_false argument lets you define the value to return if the condition is not satisfied.

Next, let us find the employees as discussed earlier. Here are the steps,

Click on the cell C2
Type =IF
Select the first option from the popup
Type NOT
(As NOT is a function in Excel, you will see the popup as shown in the following image)
Double-click on the NOT command
Specify the first condition as B2<=100000
Complete the bracket for the NOT function using )
Type ,
Specify the value B2*0.10 if the logical test is TRUE
Type ,
Specify the value “No Bonus” if the logical test is FALSE
Complete the bracket for the IF function using )
Press Enter key

Our final formula is as follows,

=IF(NOT(B2<=100000), B2*0.1, "No Bonus")

Where,

B2<=100000 is used to find the employees who couldn’t go beyond the sales target
B2*0.10 is used to calculate the bonus if the employee could make the sales beyond $100,000

The results are displayed in the following image,

Takeaway

The NOT is a simple logical function. However, you need to carefully understand the syntax and practice the examples discussed in the above section. It will clear all of your confusion.

You can combine the NOT function with various pre-built functions, such as IF and AND, to create powerful formulas.

Feel free to comment below if you are stuck somewhere or having any particular error while using the NOT function.

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