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DB Function in Microsoft Excel: Syntax, Examples & Troubleshooting

Financial Intermediate Microsoft Excel

Calculate fixed-declining depreciation with Excel DB. See the rounded rate, full-year and partial-first-year schedules, month defaults and a salvage-value reconciliation.

Verification status: See the evidence and test scope described in this guide. How formula examples are checked

Quick answer: DB returns depreciation for one period using Excel’s fixed-declining balance method. It derives a rate from cost, salvage and life, rounds that rate to three decimal places, and applies it to the remaining book value. It does not return cumulative depreciation.

Syntax and arguments

=DB(cost, salvage, life, period, [month])

cost is the asset’s initial cost; salvage is its intended value at the end of depreciation; life is the number of depreciation periods; and period identifies the particular period to calculate. All four are required. Life and period must use matching units.

month is optional and means the number of months in the first year, not a calendar month number such as January = 1. It defaults to 12. With a shorter first year, the final calculation can cover the remaining months after the nominal life. Use coherent nonnegative asset amounts, a positive life and a period inside the intended schedule; the reviewed individual help does not publish an exhaustive error/coercion table.

Worked example: three full years

Enter 8000 in B2 (cost), 1000 in B3 (salvage) and 3 in B4 (life in years). Enter period numbers 1, 2, 3 in A7:A9.

  1. In B7 enter =DB($B$2,$B$3,$B$4,A7).
  2. Fill B7 through B9.
  3. Expected annual depreciation is 4000, 2000, 1000.
  4. =SUM(B7:B9) is expected to return 7000; cost minus this total is 1000.

Here the rate is exactly 1-(1000/8000)^(1/3) = 0.5, unchanged by three-decimal rounding. Year 1 depreciates 8000 × 0.5. Year 2 applies 0.5 to the remaining 4000, and year 3 applies it to the remaining 2000. The period index must advance while the three asset inputs remain fixed.

Second example: a six-month first year

Using the same asset, evaluate:

=DB(8000,1000,3,1,6)
=DB(8000,1000,3,2,6)
=DB(8000,1000,3,3,6)
=DB(8000,1000,3,4,6)

Expected depreciation amounts are 2000, 3000, 1500, 375. The first period is 8000 × 0.5 × 6/12. The two middle years use the ordinary remaining-balance rule. The final partial year is 1500 × 0.5 × 6/12 = 375.

Total depreciation is 6875, leaving 1125. Do not overwrite that residual with 1000 and still label the schedule as unmodified DB output. The documented partial-year formula does not promise an exact final salvage match for every setup.

Advanced application: expose the rounded-rate assumption

For cost 1000, salvage 100 and life 3, the unrounded derived rate is approximately 0.5358411166, but DB uses 0.536. Consequently, =DB(1000,100,3,1) is expected to return 536, rather than 535.8411166.

Subsequent full-period depreciation is expected to be 248.704 and 115.398656, leaving 99.897344. Rounding only the displayed currency values is not the same as DB’s internal three-decimal rate rounding. Retain full precision in the model and round a final display only where the reporting policy requires it.

A reconciliation column can start at cost and subtract each period’s depreciation. It reveals whether a difference comes from a copied reference, a partial year or the documented rate rounding. DB is distinct from applying a user-selected acceleration factor to remaining book value.

Troubleshooting and limits

  • First-year amount too small: check whether month was intentionally less than 12; it is the months in service during the first year.
  • Repeated depreciation values: a fixed period reference prevents the schedule advancing. Keep the asset inputs absolute and the period input relative.
  • Final value differs from salvage: inspect rate rounding and partial-year treatment before introducing an adjustment.
  • Monthly/annual mismatch: life and period must use compatible units; the month argument is not a universal conversion switch.
  • Error result: inspect negative or nonnumeric inputs, zero life and out-of-schedule periods. Do not rely on undocumented coercion behavior.

This is a calculation-method demonstration, not a statement that DB is the required accounting or tax policy for a particular asset or jurisdiction.

Compatibility and verification

Microsoft’s reference checked on October 17, 2026 lists: Excel for Microsoft 365 Excel for Microsoft 365 for Mac Excel 2024 Excel 2024 for Mac Excel 2021 Excel 2021 for Mac Excel 2019 Excel 2016. This current support list does not establish the first release. The introduction version and last functioning version have not been established from the reviewed documentation. No retirement is asserted.

Example verification: Expected numerical results are independently calculated; text and shape expectations follow the documented contract. These examples have not been tested in Microsoft Excel. No screenshot or native execution is claimed.

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