VLOOKUP Formula Generator
VLOOKUP searches for a value in the first column of a table and returns a value in the same row from a column you specify. It's one of the most-used lookup functions in spreadsheets.
=VLOOKUP(lookup_value, table_array, col_index_num, [range_lookup])Examples
Find an employee's department
=VLOOKUP(A2, Employees!A:C, 3, FALSE)Searches for the value in A2 within the first column of Employees sheet, returns the value from column 3 (Department).
Get product price from a price list
=VLOOKUP("Widget", A2:C100, 3, FALSE)Finds "Widget" in column A and returns the corresponding price from column C.
Look up a student's grade
=VLOOKUP(D1, A2:B50, 2, FALSE)Finds the student name in D1 within the range A2:B50 and returns their grade from column B.
Tips
- ✓Always use FALSE as the last argument for exact matches — TRUE gives approximate matches which is rarely what you want.
- ✓VLOOKUP can only look right. If you need to look left, use INDEX-MATCH or XLOOKUP instead.
- ✓The lookup value must be in the first column of your table range.
Related Formulas
INDEX-MATCH
INDEX-MATCH is a powerful combination that can look up values in any direction —...
XLOOKUP
XLOOKUP is the modern replacement for VLOOKUP and HLOOKUP. It can search in any ...
FILTER
FILTER returns rows from a range that meet specified conditions. It's like AutoF...
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