Apple numbers User Manual
Chapter 12
Dictionary of Functions
215
COLUMNS
The COLUMNS function counts how many columns are in a range of cells.
COLUMNS(cell-range)
 cell-range: A range of cells in a table.
Notes
If you select an entire row for cell-range, Numbers returns the total number of cells in
the row, which changes when you resize the table.
If you select an entire row for cell-range, Numbers returns the total number of cells in
the row, which changes when you resize the table.
COMBIN
The COMBIN function finds the number of different ways you can combine a number of
items into groups of a specific size, ignoring the order within the groups.
items into groups of a specific size, ignoring the order within the groups.
COMBIN(items, size)
 items: The total number of items that can be combined.
 size: The number of items combined in each group.
 size: The number of items combined in each group.
Notes
Remember that combinations are not the same as permutations. The order of the items
in a group is ignored for combinations but not for permutations. For example, (1, 2, 3)
and (3, 2, 1) are the same combination but two unique permutations.
Remember that combinations are not the same as permutations. The order of the items
in a group is ignored for combinations but not for permutations. For example, (1, 2, 3)
and (3, 2, 1) are the same combination but two unique permutations.
Examples
COLUMNS(B3:D10) returns 3, the number of columns in the range (columns B, C, and D).
COLUMNS(5:5) returns the total number of columns in row 5.
Examples
COMBIN(3, 2) returns 3, the number of unique groups you can create if you start with 3 items and
group them 2 at a time.
group them 2 at a time.
COMBIN(3.2, 2.3) returns 3. Fractional parts are dropped.
Both COMBIN(5, 2) and COMBIN(5,3) return 10.