📉 Mastering the MIN Function in Google Sheets: Find the Smallest Value Instantly

Whether you’re analyzing prices, test scores, dates, or any other kind of data, finding the minimum value in a dataset is a common and critical task.
In Google Sheets, the MIN function makes this process incredibly simple. In this post, we’ll cover how to use the MIN function effectively with clear examples and practical applications.

✅ What is the MIN Function?

The MIN function returns the smallest value from a set of numbers, dates, or times.

📌 Syntax

=MIN(value1, [value2, ...])

• value1, value2, ...: These can be individual numbers, cells, ranges, or a combination of all.
• You can input a single range or multiple values separated by commas.

✅ Examples of Using the MIN Function

🔹 Example 1: Find the minimum in a range

=MIN(A2:A6)

• Returns the smallest number between A2 and A6.
• If A2:A6 contains 85, 93, 77, 89, 92 → the result is 77.

🔹 Example 2: Compare specific values and cells

=MIN(100, B2, C2)

• Compares the number 100 with the values in cells B2 and C2, and returns the smallest.

🔹 Example 3: Find the earliest date

=MIN(D2:D10)

• Returns the earliest date among the cells D2 to D10.

🔹 Example 4: Include negative values

=MIN(-5, -10, 3, 0)

• Returns -10 as the smallest value.

🧠 Real-World Use Cases

📊 1. Identify the lowest product price

=MIN(B2:B100)

• Instantly reveals the cheapest product in a long list of prices.

🕒 2. Calculate the earliest project start date

=MIN(C2:C20)

• Helpful when scheduling projects with multiple start dates.

📉 3. Extract the lowest exam score

=MIN(D2:D30)

• Useful for academic analysis or identifying underperformance.

⚠️ Things to Keep in Mind

• Blank cells are ignored, but text entries may cause errors.
• Strings that look like numbers (e.g., "100") are not treated as numeric.
• Any error value (e.g., #DIV/0!) in the range will cause the entire formula to fail.

🛠️ Combine with IFERROR for Robustness

To prevent formula errors, wrap your MIN function in IFERROR.

=IFERROR(MIN(A2:A10), "No result")

• Displays “No result” if the function fails due to an error.

✅ Summary

The MIN function is a simple but powerful tool in your Google Sheets arsenal.
Anytime you need to identify the lowest value in a dataset, just plug in =MIN() and let Sheets do the work!