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Total Cell Count Calculator

Multiply a cell concentration by the suspension volume to get the total number of cells, and apply a viability percentage to get the number of viable cells.

Formula

Ntotal=c×VN_{\text{total}} = c \times V
Nviable=Ntotal×viability100N_{\text{viable}} = N_{\text{total}} \times \dfrac{\text{viability}}{100}
cc
cells per mL of suspension
viability\text{viability}
percentage of cells that exclude the viability dye

How it works

Once the concentration of a suspension is known, the total number of cells is that concentration multiplied by the volume. Planning a seeding or a freeze-down needs the number of viable cells, which is the total scaled by the viability.

Worked example

10 mL of suspension at 1.06 × 10⁶ cells/mL with 92% viability.

  1. Total = 1.06 × 10⁶ cells/mL × 10 mL = 1.06 × 10⁷.
  2. Viable = 1.06 × 10⁷ × 0.92 = 9.75 × 10⁶.

The suspension holds 1.06 × 10⁷ cells, of which 9.75 × 10⁶ are viable.

These are the values the calculator opens with, so you can check its output against this example.

Assumptions

  • The concentration was measured on a well-mixed sample of this suspension.
  • Viability was measured on the same sample.

Common mistakes

  • Using the volume before the counting sample was removed when the sample was a large share of the total.
  • Applying viability twice, once in the count and again here. If you counted only live cells, the concentration is already a viable count.

Related tools

Hemocytometer Cell Counting CalculatorCells per mL from a hemocytometer countOpen calculatorCell Viability Calculator (Trypan Blue)Percent viability from live and dead countsOpen calculatorCell Seeding CalculatorSuspension and medium for a plate of wellsOpen calculator

Related equipment

Service documentation, failure modes and parts for the instruments this calculation is used with.