SUM
Quirk foundCategory: Math and trigonometry · Last tested 2026-07-04
Support matrix
| Engine | Documented | Live-tested | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Excel | Yes | Not yet | n/a |
| Google Sheets | Yes | Not yet | n/a |
| LibreOffice Calc | Yes | Yes (24.2.7.2, 2026-07-04) | Quirk found |
Discovered quirks
- =SUM(1,"2",3) on LibreOffice Calc returned #VALUE!, but the documented/expected result is 6. Contrast with SUM_text_in_cell_reference_ignored: Excel coerces literal string arguments that look like numbers when they are typed directly into the formula, but does not do so for text found inside a range reference; MISMATCH vs expected: expected 6, got '#VALUE!'
Executed test cases
LibreOffice Calc 24.2.7.2 (tested 2026-07-04)
| Formula | Description | Result | Expected | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| =SUM(A1:A5) | Basic sum of a contiguous numeric range | 15 | 15 | Matched |
| =SUM(A1:A3) | A text value stored in a referenced cell is IGNORED by SUM, not coerced to a number, even though it looks numeric | 4 | 4 A2 holds the text string '2' (not the number 2); SUM over a range skips text cells entirely, so the total is 1+3=4, not 6 |
Matched |
| =SUM(1,"2",3) | A numeric-looking TEXT LITERAL passed directly as a function argument (not via a cell reference) IS coerced to a number, unlike the same text sitting in a referenced cell | #VALUE! | 6 Contrast with SUM_text_in_cell_reference_ignored: Excel coerces literal string arguments that look like numbers when they are typed directly into the formula, but does not do so for text found inside a range reference |
Mismatch |
| =SUM(A1:A3) | Summing an entirely empty range returns 0, not an error | 0 | 0 | Matched |
Docs & syntax
- Excel: official documentation
- Google Sheets: official documentation
- LibreOffice Calc: official documentation