VLOOKUP

Looks up a value in the first column of a range and returns a value from a column to its right in the same row.

Syntax

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

Arguments

lookup_value - The value to search for in the first column of the range.
table_array - The range that contains the data. The lookup happens in its first column.
col_index_num - The column number in the range (starting at 1) whose value to return.
range_lookup (optional) - FALSE for an exact match (recommended), TRUE for an approximate match on sorted data.

=VLOOKUP("A1", D2:F10, 3, FALSE)

Returns: The value in column F of the row whose column D equals "A1"

Exact match. The 3 means return the third column of D:F, which is F.

=VLOOKUP(A2, $D$2:$F$100, 2, FALSE)

Returns: Column E value matching A2

Absolute references ($) keep the table fixed when you copy the formula down.

#N/A means the lookup value wasn't found in the first column - check for stray spaces or a number stored as text.
The result column must be to the right of the lookup column. To look left, use INDEX/MATCH or XLOOKUP.
Forgetting FALSE lets Excel return an approximate match, which silently returns wrong values on unsorted data.

Yes. VLOOKUP uses the same syntax in Google Sheets and LibreOffice Calc, so you can paste these formulas straight across.

Fill in your ranges and copy a ready-to-paste formula - no signup.