COMBIN() and PERMUT()

COMBIN() - This function returns the number of combinations of a subset of items.

Syntax

COMBIN(Count_1;Count_2)

Count_1 is the number of items in the set

Count_2 isthe number of items to chose from the set


PERMUT() - This function returns the number of permutations for a given number of objects.

Syntax

PERMUT(Count_1;Count_2)

Count_1 is the total number of objects

Count_2 is the number of objects in each permutation


Combinations and permutations can be confusing. Let's take a look at the difference.

Suppose you have 9 books and you want to chose 3 of them to give to a book sale. How many different ways can this be done? This is an example of a combination.

Suppose you have 9 books and you want to chose 3 of them to arrange on your desk. How many ways can this be done? This is an example of a permutation.

The difference between the two is with combination, the order you chose the items does not make a difference. With permutations, the order in which you chose the items makes a difference. The two examples above show a good example of this.

Cell B1 contains the formula =COMBIN(9;3)

Cell B3 contains the formula =PERMUT(9;3)

The screen shot shows the answers to each one.