Guides · Counting and tallying
Counting and tallying guides
Most counting goes wrong in the same three places: the method, the moment you lose your place, and the sum at the end. These guides cover the methods people actually use, from five-bar tally marks and a door clicker to a full stock-take, a show of hands at a meeting and a crowd estimate from a photograph, and say where each one tends to slip.
All counting and tallying guides
How to count store foot traffic and work out the conversion rateWho to count and who to leave out, sample hours matched hour by hour to the till, conversion per person and per group, and how big a change has to be before it is real.Published · 11 min read
How to do a manual traffic countThe class schemes compared (FHWA's 13, the DfT's census classes, PNG's 0-12), why 15-minute intervals, a tally sheet layout, and the peak hour factor worked through.Published · 14 min read
Cycle counting: how often to count A, B and C itemsHow to rank items by value, why no rulebook fixes the A-item frequency, the daily workload worked out, and the tolerance and recount rules ERP systems use.Published · 16 min read
How to count a flock of birdsBlocks, tens, and why the number to report is the most seen at one time.Updated · 9 min read
Types of counters explainedSynchronous vs asynchronous, mod-N, ring and Johnson, industrial and PLC counters, plus mechanical and software counters.Updated · 11 min read
Tally marks explainedGroups of five, the five-bar gate, and why the convention has survived for centuries.Updated · 19 min read
How to make a counterTwenty lines gets you counting. Here is what to add after that, and why.Updated · 9 min read
How to do a stock takeCounting is the easy part. Preparing, and knowing your count is right, is the job.Updated · 7 min read
How to click fasterHardware and grip account for most of the gap. Practice accounts for less than people think.Updated · 6 min read
How to do an accurate headcountCounting people is easy. Counting them accurately, twice, is not.Updated · 7 min read
How to estimate crowd size with the Jacobs methodArea times density, the loose, dense and mosh-pit figures in both units and who gives which, a worked plaza estimate with its error, and how to check a claimed number.Published · 15 min read
How to tally survey responses by handA worked tally of 60 paper forms, from the sheet to the percentages. Blank answers, two boxes ticked, tick-all questions, write-ins, and the check that proves the count.Published · 21 min read
Tally marks in Excel and Google SheetsThe REPT, INT and MOD formula for five-bar gates, tested on every count from 0 to 120; a tally chart from raw answers with COUNTIF; and why LEN miscounts typed tallies.Published · 16 min read
How to count votes at a meetingMajority means more than half of the votes cast, not 50% plus one, and an abstention is not a vote. The four voting methods, two-teller counting, and a tellers' report worked with numbers.Published · 16 min read
How many people do you need to survey?Why 385 answers a city and 45 answers a club, and the margin each sample size buys.Updated · 11 min read
Why word counts differ between toolsThe same sentence is 26 words to one counter and 39 to another. Four counting rules side by side, and how to meet a hard limit whichever one a form uses.Published · 14 min read
Other topics: sports scoring and rules, writing and word counts, lab and field counts, health, fitness and habits, prayer beads and crafts, or every guide on the guides front page.