VARA in WPS Spreadsheet: Sample Variance Including Logical and Text Cells

VARA calculates sample variance while including logical and text values under the documented conversion rules. For referenced cells containing 2, 4, TRUE, FALSE, pending, the independent converted-data model is 2, 4, 1, 0, 0, giving variance 2.8.

Only use this interpretation if text genuinely belongs in the calculation as zero. A missing measurement labelled pending is not automatically a zero measurement.

VARA(value1,value2,...)

value1 supplies the first value or range, with further values or ranges supplying more sample observations. The official lesson conflicts on the maximum number of arguments: its reference says 30 while its walkthrough says 255. No current universal maximum is claimed here. One range is one argument, not one argument per cell.

The walkthrough describes referenced TRUE as 1 and FALSE, text and text-formatted numbers as 0. The examples below use a reference with actual logical cells and ordinary nonnumeric text. Direct literal numeric-text behavior is not inferred from the range example.

Set up A1:B6 as follows. Column A labels are outside the calculation range.

In D2 enter =VARA(B2:B6). Expected output under the documented reference conversion: 2.8. The converted values have mean 1.4. Squared deviations are 0.36, 6.76, 0.16, 1.96 and 1.96, totalling 11.2. Divide by 5 - 1 = 4.

Do not use AVERAGE(B2:B6) as the manual mean for this check: a function that ignores logical/text cells would use a different observation set. Enter the explicit numeric conversions in a separate helper range if you want to inspect the arithmetic.

Put 2, 4 and 6 in F2:F4. =VARA(F2:F4) has expected output 4. Put 3, 3 and 3 in G2:G4; =VARA(G2:G4) has expected output 0. These controls isolate sample-variance arithmetic from conversion rules.

Compare the original numeric pair 2 and 4 with the range 2, 4, pending. For the numeric pair the sample variance is 2. For the three-cell referenced range the modeled values are 2, 4, 0, their mean is 2, and sample variance is 4.

Enter 2, 4 and pending in J2:J4 and calculate =VARA(J2:J4). Expected output: 4. The text did not merely add zero to the sum; it also added an observation to the denominator and changed the mean. This is why including a header or status label can materially distort a result.

• Keep the header out of the selected range. Text can participate as zero instead of being silently excluded.
• Use actual logical values, not the text strings TRUE and FALSE, when testing the logical mapping.
• Verify whether a numeric-looking imported cell is stored as a number or as text. Do not extrapolate reference behavior to direct quoted arguments.
• At least two included observations are needed for the n-1 sample calculation. Blank cells, errors, empty-string formulas and direct-argument coercion are outside these verified examples.
• For a whole population, the lesson points to VARPA. VARA remains a sample statistic; the letter A does not mean population.

The official WPS VARA lesson was fetched afresh on October 19, 2026. Its edition banner says WPS Office for Windows Personal. The lesson dates from 2019; it does not establish introduction or retirement dates, exact build coverage, or current Mac, Linux, web and mobile behavior. Examples are independently calculated expectations, not observed WPS outputs. Native execution and genuine current-application screenshots remain unverified.

VARPA, VAR.S, AVERAGEA, COUNT. Browse the WPS function library.