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#Statistical

COVAR

Excel Functions

Get the population covariance between two arrays.

Syntax

EXCEL
=COVAR(array1, array2)

Arguments

Parameter Description
array1 The first set of data values.
array2 The second set of data values.

Return Value

Returns a number that represents the covariance.

Details

The COVAR function calculates the population covariance between two data sets. It measures the degree to which two variables vary together, providing insight into their linear relationship. The return value from the function is a single number that can be positive, negative, or zero, depending on the relationship between the variables. Unlike correlation, covariance is not standardized and depends on the units of measurement. In this example, we'll examine the relationship between temperature (°F) and ice cream sales ($). As temperature increases, ice cream sales tend to increase as well, demonstrating positive covariance. The positive result indicates that temperature and ice cream sales have a positive relationship. As one increases, the other increases too. Here we examine the relations

Examples

Example #1 - Positive Covariance
EXCEL
=COVAR(B5:B9,C5:C9) // returns 335
Example #2 - Negative Covariance
EXCEL
=COVAR(B5:B9,C5:C9) // returns -160000000
Example #3 - Zero Covariance
EXCEL
=COVAR(B5:B14,C5:C14) // returns -0.5

See Also

COVARIANCE.P COVARIANCE.S CORREL VAR