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HOW TO INTERPOLATE IN EXCEL

By Tamal Das Published 2 days ago
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Interpolation is the process of estimating data points within an existing data
set. Here's how to interpolate in Excel.



If you’re into mathematics and need to discover unknown data points from a
survey sample of known data points, interpolating with Excel is an effortless
choice.

Excel is a robust calculator with data visualization. Thus, for various
mathematical and statistical analyses, you’ll always find it useful. Though
there is no straightforward function for interpolation, you can use various
functions to estimate new data points from a given data table of X and Y values.

Read on to know the popular and easy data interpolation methods in Excel.




1. USING A MATHEMATICAL EQUATION

One of the basic approaches of data interpolation in Microsoft Excel is to apply
the mathematical formula of linear interpolation. You can use this method if
getting a linear trendline for a chart.



Y= Y1 + (X-X1)⨯(Y2-Y1)/(X2-X1)



For example, you want to find out the value of Y when X is 15 from this table.
Here is how:

 1. Create a table of X1, X2, Y1, and Y2 values by analyzing the table.
    
 2. You have to choose the data points one step above and below the new X-value
    that you’re looking for.
 3. Now, apply the following formula in any cell to find the interpolated value
    of Y that corresponds to the X-value 15.



=G5+(K4-E5)*(H5-G5)/(F5-E5)



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The process is pretty simple and manual. For larger data sets, you'll have to
invest a lot of time in interpolating the data points.

Download: Interpolate in Excel Spreadsheet (Free)

Related: How to Make a Scatter Plot in Excel and Present Your Data




2. USING THE CURVE FITTING METHOD

Curve fitting is another quick yet manual method to interpolate with Excel. Just
create a scatter plot and generate the graph equation. Excel utilizes linear
regression to populate the equation. You need to apply this curve fit equation
to find the value of Y:



Y= Slope * X + Y-intercept





To discover the value of Y from a given value of X, which is 15, you can try
these steps:

 1. Select the table and insert a scatter chart.
 2. Right-click on the trendline and then select Format Trendline.
 3. Check the boxes beside Display R-squared value on chart and Display Equation
    on chart.
 4. Also, choose the Linear trendline.
 5. Once the scatter graph reveals the equation, fit the value of X into it to
    find the value of Y.
 6. The following formula reveals the value of Y.





=0.9889*K4+3.5333



The curve fitting method is only suitable for small data sets. There is no easy
automation for this process, and you can only rely on the Microsoft Excel macros
for hot-key-based automation.




3. USING EXCEL FUNCTIONS: SLOPE AND INTERCEPT

You can utilize the SLOPE and INTERCEPT functions in Excel for linear
interpolation of the Y value. You can easily apply these functions since they
only require the values of known Xs and Ys. The following are the syntaxes that
you’ll need to use:



=SLOPE(known_y's, known_x's)





=INTERCEPT(known_y's, known_x's)





Here is how you can interpolate data points via this method:

 1. Rename two cells with Slope and Intercept.
 2. Apply the SLOPE function beneath the Slope header and choose the relevant
    data from the table.
 3. Similarly, apply the INTERCEPT function and populate the value of intercept.
 4. Now, apply the Y= Slope * X + Y-intercept formula to discover the value of
    Y.
 5. You can create an Excel formula for the above equation, where you can simply
    change the X’s value to find out other unknown data points.



You can interpolate faster if you make cells for the X-value, Slope, and
Intercept. However, this process may not fetch accurate data for non-linear
interpolation.




4. USING EXCEL FUNCTION: FORECAST

It’s a popular Excel function for predicting performance by analyzing a set of
real-world data points. You’ll find FORECAST and FORECAST.LINEAR in Excel 2016
and later editions. It’s good to use FORECAST.LINEAR for reliable results.



The function utilizes three arguments to produce a predicted data point. These
arguments are a given value for X, known values of Y, and values of Xs from a
table. Check out the syntax below:



=FORECAST.LINEAR(x, known_y's, known_x's)





You can quickly determine the value of Y by following these steps:

 1. The cell where you want to populate the value for Y should have an equal (=)
    sign.
 2. Now, type Forecast and select FORECAST.LINEAR function from the formula
    drop-down menu.
 3. Click on the X’s value and put a comma.
 4. Then select the known Ys’ value cell range followed by a comma.
 5. Select the known Xs’ cell range and close the formula with a parenthesis.
 6. Press Enter to retrieve the interpolated value of Y.
 7. You can keep on changing the value of X within the range of the given table
    to fetch Y-values.
 8. The FORECAST formula of this tutorial is as follows:





=FORECAST.LINEAR(K4,C2:C10,B2:B10)



The FORECAST.LINEAR functions offer highly accurate data prediction for linear
and slightly nonlinear data points. It utilizes the first and last values for a
given X-value and takes into account the entire data set.

Therefore, you’ll see the utilization of this function for mission-critical data
analytics like forecasting web traffic, modeling financial data, and calculating
business performance.




5. GROWTH FUNCTION FOR NONLINEAR INTERPOLATION

When you’ve got a table of real-world data in exponential form, FORECAST.LINEAR
won’t yield accurate interpolated data points. Excel has another excellent
function for you to predict data, and that’s GROWTH. Like other functions
mentioned above, this formula is also easy-to-apply.




Apart from the familiar arguments like known Xs’ cell range, known Ys’ values,
and the given value of X, GROWTH utilizes an additional logical value. Usually,
you need to enter one for this logical constant. Here is how the syntax looks:



=GROWTH(known_y’s,[known_x’s],[new_x’s],[const])



To interpolate data in Excel by using the GROWTH function, you may follow these
steps:

 1. Insert the GROWTH function in any cell where you want the interpolated value
    for Y.
 2. Enter the cell range for known Y-values followed by a comma.
 3. Repeat the above step to input the cell range for known X-values.
 4. Now, enter the value of given X and put a comma.
 5. Enter 1 as the last argument and close the formula.
 6. Hit Enter to generate the value of interpolated Y.
 7. You can use cell references instead of actual values to discover more values
    by simply changing the given data.
 8. The final formula will look like the following:





=GROWTH(B2:B12,A2:A12,E2,1)



When compared to the FORECAST function, GROWTH generates more reliable and
accurate interpolated data points for exponential data sets that are mostly
nonlinear. Similar to FORECAST, you can also automate the GROWTH function
without applying much effort.




DATA INTERPOLATION AND FORECASTING MADE EASY

You can now efficiently interpolate data for your upcoming tasks from work or
school.

Such quick data insights help you in various ways, like cutting a few repetitive
steps of data research or estimating your task load before taking up any more
projects.



The 8 Best Features of Google Data Studio for Data Analysis and Visualization

Want to impress your audience with actionable data insights and compelling
visualizations? Check out these Google Data Studio features.

Read Next
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Related Topics
 * Productivity
 * Microsoft Excel
 * Data Analysis
 * Spreadsheet Tips
 * Microsoft Office Tips

About The Author
Tamal Das (321 Articles Published)


Tamal is a freelance writer at MakeUseOf. After gaining substantial experience
in technology, finance, and business processes in his previous job in an IT
consulting company, he adopted writing as a full-time profession 3 years ago.
While not writing about productivity and the latest tech news, he loves to play
Splinter Cell and binge-watch Netflix/ Prime Video.

More From Tamal Das


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