The LARGE function

The LARGE function is a statistical function which returns the n-th largest value from the selected dataset. You specify which value you want returned, and it will order the range from largest to smallest then returns the appropriate number.

This is the format of the LARGE function:

=LARGE(VALUE RANGE, N-TH VALUE)

Here is an example of the LARGE function:

=LARGE({9,8,7,5,3,2}, 4) = 5

This function is valuable when you are determining ranks, percentile values, or tracking top 3, 5, 10, etc… values from a list of results. While simple in nature, it is underrated as a method of evaluating data outputs.

An example of a functional implementation of this would be tracking the performances of salespeople within your company. You want to highlight the top ten individuals and return their names so you can congratulate them on a great year. You would use the LARGE function to return the tenth highest value from your list, highlighting the salespeople whose sales meet or exceed that amount. Using something like conditional formatting for this makes it a simple process which will adapt as your data is updated.

=LARGE(SALES DATA SET, 10) = tenth highest sales amount