=ABS(num-dur)

The spelling and argument order are taken from Apple’s ABS function documentation. Do not infer undocumented arguments or a historical first-supported app version from this page.

In the English/comma-decimal examples, multiple function arguments use a comma. Apple says that when the decimal separator is set to comma, typed function arguments should instead be separated with a semicolon. A range such as B2:B6 uses a colon, not an argument separator. In Numbers a spreadsheet can contain multiple tables on one sheet. All worked examples here put the formula in the same table as the source data and use simple references such as B2. When moving the result to a different table, select source cells using the formula editor and accept the table-qualified reference Numbers generates. Excel worksheet references are not a drop-in replacement.

1. Create a Numbers table named Forecast with Item, Planned, and Actual in A1:C1. Add a Signed gap column D and an Absolute gap column E.
2. Enter the numeric inputs below. The quantities are plain numbers, not date or duration entries.
3. In D2, calculate the signed difference. In E2, wrap that result with ABS. Use the row-specific formulas shown below as you fill down.

=C2-B2

Expected result in D2: -7. Now enter:

=ABS(D2)

Expected result in E2: 7. The forecast is off by seven units regardless of which direction. For row 3, =ABS(C3-B3) should give 15; for row 4 it should give 0. These are independently calculated expectations, not results observed in Numbers.

A quick independent literal check is =ABS(5-8), which should return 3; Apple’s official ABS page includes that expression. =ABS(0) should return 0.

For a permitted absolute difference of 10 units, put this formula in an empty result cell for row 3:

=IF(ABS(C3-B3)>10,"Investigate","Within tolerance")

Expected output: Investigate because |90 − 75| = 15 > 10. The same formula with row 2 references gives Within tolerance because |93 − 100| = 7. Here ABS is the magnitude test; IF selects the label. Make sure 10 is the correct business threshold, not an arbitrary value copied from a tutorial.

Another useful formula calculates the total absolute discrepancy for the three example rows:

=ABS(C2-B2)+ABS(C3-B3)+ABS(C4-B4)

Expected result: 22 (7 + 15 + 0). Summing signed differences would instead give −7 + 15 + 0 = 8, which measures net bias rather than total error magnitude. Decide which question you are answering before choosing a metric.

• ABS discards the sign. A negative signed difference and a positive signed difference of equal magnitude both produce the same absolute value. Keep the signed column if overspending vs underspending matters.
• Apple supports number or duration inputs for ABS. It does not list ordinary text or arbitrary date/time values as valid num-dur inputs. If your source represents the duration as text, first validate its type in Numbers.
• A single argument is required. ABS(B2:B6) is not documented as a built-in aggregator returning a total for that whole range; apply ABS to a specific value or expression, and combine results explicitly when needed.
• An empty referenced cell: Apple’s example says =ABS(B1) returns 0 when B1 is empty. This does not establish how every blank-containing expression or unrelated text cell behaves. Test your actual use case before treating blanks as legitimate zero discrepancies.
• Zero and formatting: zero stays zero. A negative-zero display, currency symbol or decimal precision setting can affect presentation but should not be mistaken for an alternate absolute-value rule.
• Error propagation: ABS does not automatically fix a broken input formula or reference. If the inner expression evaluates to an error, inspect it before considering IFERROR.

If E2 looks wrong, inspect D2 first: it should be −7 for 93 minus 100. If D2 is 7, the subtraction is reversed; ABS hides that difference, so check the original signed calculation too. If a formula returns an error, confirm the input is a number or duration rather than text like "93 units". If the result looks like a date or currency amount, set the cell format appropriate to a numeric discrepancy. For an output formula in a different table, use the Numbers editor to select Forecast cells and let it build the table-qualified reference.

Excel and Sheets offer ABS for numeric magnitudes, so this tutorial’s plain-number examples have the same mathematical purpose. Apple explicitly documents duration-valued ABS arguments; don’t presume identical native duration behaviour in another spreadsheet product. Numbers cross-table references often use TableName::Cell tokens; Excel uses its own worksheet notation, and your locale determines argument separators for functions with multiple arguments.

• SUMIFS
• COUNTIFS

For additional functions, browse the Apple Numbers function directory to find currently available guides.

• Apple Numbers — function documentation
• Apple — Functions overview
• Apple — Formulas and Functions Help
• Apple — Refer to cells in formulas

Verification status: Official documentation checked; example outcomes were independently reasoned or arithmetically checked where applicable. Not executed in Apple Numbers.

• No genuine Apple Numbers screenshots are included; this guide does not use mock application images.