The Rate function in Excel shows NUM error.

Question

This basic RATE formula in Excel shows the NUM error as a result. I have tried the two fixes/adjustments in help which did not resolve it. Other financial formulas work as expected (PMT, NPER, etc.)

Answer 1

Hello @Gregg Wooden, 

Thank you for reaching out to Microsoft Q&A Community. 

Please notify us if we've misunderstood your situation. From your sharing, we understand that 15114 as pv, 60 as nper and 422 as pmt. In this calculation, one of the values (either pmt or pv) should be negative to indicate cash outflow and inflow. For example: 

Or you can use the formula =RATE(F6 , -F8 , F5)

This will help Excel to understand that: 

• You're paying 422 per period (negative cash flow), 
• You received 15114 upfront (positive cash flow), 
• You want to calculate the interest rate per period. 

I hope the above information is helpful for you. If there's anything else I can help you with, please feel free to reach out again.  

Looking forward to your response. 

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