How to Calculate Variance of Records with DVAR in Excel

Use DVAR to measure the variance of matching records — compare the volatility of investment funds from one table.

You will learn to

• Find the sample variance for one condition
• Find it for two conditions
• Compare two groups with a variance ratio

How it works

DVAR returns the sample variance of one column for the records that match a criteria range — the square of the standard deviation. In finance, variance of returns is a basic measure of risk: the more returns jump around, the higher the variance.

Because each DVAR reads its own criteria range, you can put two funds side by side and divide one variance by the other. That variance ratio is the F statistic used to test whether two groups differ in spread.

=DVAR(A1:D13,"Return (%)",G1:G2)