Mastering the VLOOKUP Function in Excel (Beginner to Advanced Guide)

Mastering the VLOOKUP Function in Excel (Beginner to Advanced Guide)

VLOOKUP() is one of Excel's most commonly used functions for searching a value in the first column of a table and returning a value in the same row from another column.

🔹 Syntax:

=VLOOKUP(lookup_value, table_array, col_index_num, [range_lookup])

✅ Example:

=VLOOKUP("Laptop", A2:C100, 3, FALSE)

This searches for "Laptop" in column A and returns the value from the 3rd column of that row.

📊 Use Cases:

• Looking up product prices
• Searching employee records
• Matching IDs with names

⚠️ Common Mistakes:

• Not using FALSE for exact match when needed
• Wrong column index number
• Table array not locked with $ for consistent reference

💡 Pro Tip:

VLOOKUP only looks to the right. Use XLOOKUP or INDEX + MATCH for more flexibility.

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