CHIDIST Function (LibreOffice Calc — Legacy)
The CHIDIST function returns the right‑tailed probability of the chi-square distribution. It is a legacy function preserved for compatibility with older spreadsheets and has been replaced by CHISQ.DIST.RT.
Compatibility
▾| Excel | ✔ |
| Gnumeric | ✔ |
| Google_sheets | ✔ |
| Libreoffice | ✔ |
| Numbers | ✖ |
| Onlyoffice | ✔ |
| Openoffice | ✔ |
| Wps | ✔ |
| Zoho | ✔ |
What the CHIDIST Function Does ▾
- Computes P(X ≥ x) for a chi-square distribution
- Used in hypothesis testing and goodness‑of‑fit tests
- Equivalent to:
CHISQ.DIST.RT(x; degrees) - Preserved for compatibility with older Excel/Calc files
Syntax ▾
CHIDIST(x; degrees_freedom)
Arguments
-
x:
The chi-square statistic (must be ≥ 0). -
degrees_freedom:
Degrees of freedom (must be ≥ 1).
Basic Examples ▾
Right‑tail probability
=CHIDIST(10; 5)
→ 0.075
Using cell references
=CHIDIST(A1; B1)
Compare with modern function
=CHISQ.DIST.RT(10; 5)
Advanced Examples ▾
Goodness‑of‑fit test (manual)
=CHIDIST(TestStatistic; Degrees)
Convert from left‑tail to right‑tail
=1 - CHISQ.DIST(x; df; TRUE)
Validate with CHIINV
=CHIINV(CHIDIST(x; df); df)
Use in model calibration
=IF(CHIDIST(x; df) < 0.05; "Reject H0"; "Fail to Reject")
Edge Cases and Behavior Details ▾
CHIDIST returns a probability between 0 and 1
Accepts:
- x ≥ 0
- degrees_freedom ≥ 1
Behavior details
- Right‑tail only
- Not symmetric
- Deprecated in favor of CHISQ.DIST.RT
- Uses internal gamma‑function approximations
Invalid input → Err:502
CHIDIST of an error → error propagates
Common Errors and Fixes ▾
Err:502 — Invalid argument
Cause:
- x < 0
- degrees_freedom < 1
- Non-numeric input
Fix:
- Validate x ≥ 0
- Ensure df ≥ 1
- Convert text with VALUE
Unexpected probability values
Cause:
- Confusing left‑tail vs right‑tail
Fix:
- Use CHISQ.DIST for left‑tail
- Use CHISQ.DIST.RT for right‑tail
Best Practices ▾
- Prefer CHISQ.DIST.RT for new spreadsheets
- Use CHIDIST only for legacy compatibility
- Validate degrees of freedom carefully
- Use CHISQ.TEST for full hypothesis testing
- Use CHIINV / CHISQ.INV.RT for critical values
CHIDIST is a legacy function — use CHISQ.DIST.RT for modern statistical modeling, but keep CHIDIST for compatibility with older spreadsheets.
Related Patterns and Alternatives ▾
- CHISQ.DIST.RT — modern right‑tail chi-square
- CHISQ.DIST — left‑tail chi-square
- CHISQ.INV.RT — right‑tail critical value
- CHISQ.TEST — full chi-square test
- FDIST / T.DIST — related distributions
By understanding CHIDIST, you can maintain compatibility with older statistical spreadsheets while using modern chi-square functions where appropriate.