STDEV.P in SoftMaker PlanMaker: Population Standard Deviation

Use STDEV.P in SoftMaker PlanMaker to calculate standard deviation for the whole population you have chosen to describe, using a denominator of n. The working example below describes weekly dispatch quantities; its result is measured in boxes. The official reference supports the function’s identity and purpose.

This guide separates documentation review from application testing. The expected numbers are independently calculated, not screenshots or results captured from SoftMaker PlanMaker.

STDEV.P(Number1 [, Number2, ...])

Numeric inputs: individual numbers or cell ranges holding the observations. One range can contain many observations; a header is not a measurement.

Additional inputs: optional extra numeric values or ranges. Omit the square brackets shown in the syntax notation when entering a formula. The numeric-only examples avoid relying on text or logical-value conversion.

The SoftMaker reference displays Number1, Number2 [, Number3 ...] for these functions. It also allows ranges and arrays as input; the range-based examples supply multiple observations within one argument.

Use the population measure when the range contains every observation in the population defined by your question. For example, all completed tickets in a fixed reporting period can form a complete population for describing that period. The same records can still be a sample when the question concerns future periods.

The result is expressed in the original measurement units. It is a measure of spread, not a tolerance limit or a forecast. A high result may be driven by a few unusual records or by several different groups being mixed together. Review the data rather than treating one dispersion number as an explanation of why the process varies.

A desktop dispatch workbook with one row per completed week provides the scenario. Enter the following numeric observations into A2:A7, one per row, with a header in A1. Use a spare result cell outside the input range.

Download the SoftMaker PlanMaker STDEV.P practice data (CSV). Import it into a new, blank sheet starting at A1, with a comma as the file delimiter and the header row retained. The CSV contains input values only, not formulas or native test results. Blank spacer columns place the requested position in D2 and any additional test data in column F. Keep observations numeric rather than importing them as text.

Example 1: Measure spread in the working register

=STDEV.P(A2:A7)

Expected result: 2.687419 (displayed to six decimal places).

The numeric count is 6, the mean is 6.666667, and the sum of squared deviations is 43.333333. Divide by 6 (n), then take the square root to return to the original measurement units.

Example 2: Check the denominator with three known numbers

=STDEV.P(2,4,6)

Expected result: 1.632993 (displayed to six decimal places).

The mean is 4 and the squared deviations are 4, 0 and 4, for a total of 8. The population denominator is 3, and the square root of that variance gives standard deviation.

Example 3: Do not confuse real zeros with missing data

For this check, use F2:F5 containing 0, 0, 8, 8, in that order. These values are included in the practice file.

=STDEV.P(F2:F5)

Expected result: 4.

All four observations are real measurements, including both zeros. The mean is 4 and the squared deviations total 64. Excluding the zeros would leave two equal values and falsely describe this group as having no spread.

Subtract the mean from each observation and square each difference. Add the squared differences and divide by n. Take the square root for standard deviation; the answer returns to the original measurement units. This mathematical definition is used to check the numbers in the examples, independently of the spreadsheet software. Keep stored results at full available precision and round only the final presentation when a report requires it. The displayed expectations above are rounded where necessary; a different number of displayed decimal places is not by itself a calculation error.

The population was not defined. Write down which records the range is meant to contain and which period they cover. A result can be mathematically correct while describing the wrong group.

The result differs from a sample calculation. The population calculation divides squared deviations by n, rather than n minus one. For the same nonconstant numeric data it is smaller than the sample standard deviation.

A zero or empty result is overinterpreted. Repeated equal numeric observations have zero spread; missing observations do not establish that fact. Count usable observations and review text, missing cells and errors before interpreting the output. Single-observation handling is deliberately not used in these examples.

This guide is scoped to the PlanMaker 2026 English reference. The PlanMaker entry accepts numeric observations supplied as values, ranges or arrays. A single cell-range reference can contain the multiple observations needed by the sample calculations; the number of arguments is not the number of observations.

For the dispatch workbook, each row describes a completed reporting week. Keep partial weeks separately or document why they belong in the same group. A smaller quantity in a partial week can affect a rank, median or dispersion measure even though the formula itself is functioning correctly.

When a workbook is shared with someone using an older office suite, preserve the original file and verify a small numeric example in the destination. Notes about a function’s history in Excel are not evidence of its first supported PlanMaker version.

The displayed syntax is a readable range-capable form; square brackets mark optional arguments and are not characters to type. Formula examples use commas as in the English help. Follow the argument separator used by your PlanMaker installation.

For the same statistical question in other programs, see STDEV.P in Microsoft Excel, STDEV.P in Google Sheets, STDEV.P in ONLYOFFICE. These links identify corresponding measures, not a guarantee that names, mixed-data rules, error codes or file conversions are identical.

MEDIAN, LARGE, SMALL, RANK.EQ, STDEV.S, VAR.S, VAR.P. Browse the SoftMaker PlanMaker function library for the other published guides.

Editorial verification: The vendor documentation was reviewed on 2026-10-12. Scope: PlanMaker 2026 English help. This is a documentation scope, not a first-release claim or a test of every PlanMaker edition. Three numeric examples were checked with an independent arithmetic model. No native application run was performed. Single-value population edge cases, mixed-data coercion, exact error-code parity and round-trip workbook compatibility remain untested; they are not labelled application-verified.