To make your orijnial formula work enclose the *J* in quotes:

=SUMIF(B1:B7,"J",A1:A7)

To add a test for blank cells use:
=SUMPRODUCT(((B1:B7="J")+(B1:B7=""))*A1:A7)

--
HTH

Sandy
In Perth, the ancient capital of Scotland
and the crowning place of kings


with @tiscali.co.uk


"Idunno Yet" wrote in message
...
I need to sum the data in column A that meets criteria in column B "=J".
I've settled on SUMIF, but it returns zero. Also, now I need to include
the
criteria "blank". Am I using the right function? If so, where have I
gone
wrong?
A B
1 1.7 J
2 5.3 U
3 5.3 U
4 5.3
5 5.3 U
=SUMIF(B1:B5,J,A1:A5)