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Min and Max
Surprisingly simple formulas with a surprisingly large number of use cases.
Formulas: Min() and Max()
Category: Math
Min()
Determines the minimum value from a list of numbers or dates/times
or stated otherwise...
Hey Coda, I have a list of numbers. Can you tell me which one is the smallest?”
Max()
Determines the maximum value from a list of numbers or dates/times
put a bit simpler...
Hey Coda, here I have a list of numbers. Can you tell me which one is the largest?
Min() and Max() each share the same, single parameter:
Value
Min(Value)
A number or list of numbers.
Below we have a list of numbers, dates, and currencies stored in the canvas. Watch out how Max() and Min() are able to pull out the smallest and largest values as you change the toggle below.
Min() values
Max() values
Min Value:
2
List of numbers:
5825
Min Value:
10/14/2025
List of dates:
10/14/2025
10/15/2025
10/16/2025
10/17/2025
Min Value:
List of currencies:
Its easy to see what these Min() and Max() formulas do when they are pulling from a Canvas based formula, but you will use them most often in workflows that involve tables.
Remember, tables are also treated as lists even though it may not always be as obvious. Let take this table for example of trees:
Trees and their Height
Tallest Tree
feet
380
Shortest Tree
feet
100
Tree
Height in Feet
Height in Meters
Difference from Tallest Tree
Tree Analysis
Coast Redwood
380
115.82
0
The Coast Redwood is the tallest tree!
Sugar Maple
115
35.05
265
The Sugar Maple tree is 265 feet shorter than the Coast Redwood
Sycamore
100
30.48
280
The Sycamore tree is 280 feet shorter than the Coast Redwood
Douglas Fir
327
99.67
53
The Douglas Fir tree is 53 feet shorter than the Coast Redwood
Swamp Gum
326
99.36
54
The Swamp Gum tree is 54 feet shorter than the Coast Redwood
No results from filter
Lets look at how we are using Max() and to enrich our table and data
Above the table itself you will notice that the Tallest Tree’s height is identified using a Max() formula.
And the Shortest Tree’s height is identified using the Min() formula.
The Yellow column above uses the Max() formula to find the tallest tree in the table, then simply subtracts the current rows height from that value. This allows us to find the difference between the current rows tree height against the tallest tree.
The Tree Analysis column above is a more complex formula, but relies on Max() to identify the tallest tree and then output an analysis statement.
A (Long) Additional Note
There are two other formulas that are very similar to Max() and Min() that have are worth mentioning that have their own unique pros/cons and use cases.
Those formulas are: MinBy() and MaxBy()
These formulas can be used on a list of values (as opposed to a list of row-references) but when so it is functionally equivalent to Min() and Max() and is actually more complicated to write.
Take this list of numbers for example:
12345
Where you will want to use MinBy() and MaxBy() is when attempting to return a row reference that contains a minimum or maximum value.
As an example, let look at the database with rows and the following columns:
Broken link
Using Max()
Let’s say you wanted to find the individual with the highest salary. If you simply use Max() you will only return the salary number rather than the name.
Using MaxBy()
MaxBy() would allow you to pull out the name and all other properties for the individual with the highest salary.
A Warning
There are some disadvantage to using MaxBy() and MinBy(), though. Let’s look at this example:
Using Max()
Using MaxBy()
Practice: Use a canvas based formula to find the minimum value of a list
Done
Use a canvas based formula to find the maximum value in a list
Done
Cause a checkbox field to be checked if that row is the minimum value in the table
Done
Cause a button to open the most recently created row in a table
Done
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