Use Excel Scenarios to store several versions of the data in a worksheet. For example, when preparing an annual budget, the Marketing and Finance departments may have different forecasts for sales.
You can store each department’s forecast as a Scenario, print the scenarios separately, or compare them side-by-side, with Summary Reports.
Important Note: The Scenario Summary and Scenario PivotTable Report are not linked to the Scenario data, and they do not update if the Scenario data changes. Use these reports to compare the data, or print the current status, and then delete the sheets, to prevent confusion.
To create a Scenario Summary:
Step: 1 On the Ribbon’s Data tab, click What-If Analysis.
Step: 2 Click the drop down arrow, and click Scenario Manager.
Step: 3 Click the Summary button.
Step: 4 In the Scenario Summary dialog box, for Report type, select Scenario Summary.
Step: 5 Press the Tab key, to move to the Result cells box.
Step: 6 On the worksheet, click on cell B6. This is the Profit cell, and it changes, based on the sales and expense amounts.
Step: 7 Click the OK button.
Step: 8 A Scenario Summary sheet is added to the workbook.
View the Scenario Summary
To compare the scenarios side by side, you can view the Scenario Summary sheet that was created.
- Select the Scenario Summary worksheet
- To show or hide the details, click the + / – buttons at the left side and top of the worksheet
In this example, the scenario cells on the Budget sheet have been named, and those names appear on the Scenario Summary sheet, making it easier to understand. For example, cell B1 is named Dept, and you can see that name in cell C6 on the Scenario Summary sheet.
There is no option for formatting the Scenario Summary when you create it. You can change the formatting in the completed report.
2 thoughts on “Create and Manage scenarios and summaries”