Table of Contents
Summary
The VLOOKUP function finds a specific value in a vertical array of data, based on a provided lookup value.
Formula
=VLOOKUP(lookup_value, table_array, col_index_num, [range_lookup])
Arguments (inputs)
lookup_value = the value to look for in the data (in the first column), can be numeric or text
table_array = the table which contains the values to lookup as well as return (range of cells)
col_index_num = the column from which to return a value (a number)
range_lookup = [optional] TRUE = Approximate match, FALSE = Exact match
Return value
The VLOOKUP formula will return a value from the column defined by the col_index_num argument. The formula will return the value for the first matching reference, even if there are multiple matches.
Example
In the example above the formula looks up the order number from the table in cells B6:F16.
=VLOOKUP(H6, B6:F16, 5, FALSE)
The lookup value is the order number listed in cell H6, 202. The table array is the entire data table, B6:F16. The column index number is 5, indicating that we want the result from the total column (5th column in the table). FALSE indicates that we are looking for an exact match.
The formula returns the value from row 8, specifically the value from cell F8, $1,200.
