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Excel DB Function in Office 365 – With Examples!!

Excel DB Function:

DB Function
DB Function

We will illustrate the explanation, syntax, and usage of the Excel DB Function in Office 365. Get an official version of Microsoft Excel from the following link: https://www.microsoft.com/en-in/microsoft-365/excel.

Explanation of DB Function:

  • The Excel DB function uses a fixed-declining balance method to evaluate the depreciation of an asset for a given period.

Fixed-declining balance calculation:

  • Excel uses the below formula to get a rate to use to evaluate depreciation based on fixed-declining balance.

Evaluate depreciation
Evaluate depreciation

  • Depreciation for the first and last periods is an exceptional case.
    • DB uses this formula for the first period.

First period
First period

  • For the last period, DB uses this formula:

Last period
Last period

DB Function – Basic Syntax:

The fundamental syntax of DB Function is,

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

  • Cost (Required) – It is the initial cost of the asset.
  • Salvage (Required) – It is the value at the end of the depreciation. It is also referred to as the salvage value of the asset.
  • Life (Required) – The number of periods to depreciate the asset. It is also called a useful life of the asset.
  • Period (Required) – The period to depreciate the asset. The units of ‘period’ and ‘life’ argument must be the same.
  • Month (Optional) – It is the number of months in the first year. It takes the default value of 12 if this argument is omitted.

Important Note:

  • #NUM! Error – The error occurs if either:
    • The supplied ‘cost’ or ‘salvage’ argument is < 0;
    • The ‘period’ or ‘life’ argument is less than or equal to 0;
    • The ‘month’ argument is less than or equal to 0 or greater than 12;
    • The ‘period’ argument is greater than the supplied ‘life’ argument (and the month argument is omitted);
    • The ‘period’ argument is greater than the supplied ‘life’ +1;
  • #VALUE! Error – The function returns the #VALUE! Error if any one of the input arguments contains a non-numeric character.

Practical Examples of DB Function:

Let’s look at some practical examples of DB Function and explore how to use it in Microsoft Excel.

*Example 1: *

  • We have entered the input values of cost, salvage, life, period, and a month into the cell range C5: G7.
  • Here, in this example, we have selected the input cells C5, D5, E5, F5, and G5 to calculate the depreciation.
  • Refer to the below syntax of the DB function to return the output.
=DB(C5,D5,E5,F5,G5)
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Example 1
Example 1

  • You need to click Enter to execute the formula.

Example 1 - Output
Example 1 – Output

  • Now, you can see the result in the I5 cell.
  • You can repeat the same for other input values.
  • The ‘month’ argument will take the default value of 12 if it is omitted.

*Example 2: *

  • The #NUM! error occurs if the ‘cost’ or ‘salvage’ argument is < 0 or the ‘period’ or ‘life’ argument is less than or equal to 0 or the ‘month’ argument is less than or equal to 0 or greater than 12 or the ‘period’ argument is greater than the supplied ‘life’ argument (and the month argument is omitted) or the ‘period’ argument is greater than the supplied ‘life’ +1.

Example 2
Example 2

*Example 3: *

  • The function returns the #VALUE! Error if any one of the input arguments contains a non-numeric character.

Example 3
Example 3

A Brief Summary:

In this short tutorial, we have illustrated how to use the EXCEL DB Function in Office 365 with clear-cut practical examples. The DB function lets you calculate the depreciation of an asset using a fixed-declining balance method. If you have any queries/doubts , kindly share it in the below comment section. Thanks for visiting Geek Excel!! Keep Learning With Us!!

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