Steps
- Describe your lookup - In the generator, enter the cell you're looking up, the table range that contains your data, and which column number holds the answer.
- Choose exact match - Set the last argument to FALSE for exact matches - this is what you want in almost every case.
- Copy the formula - The generator assembles the VLOOKUP with correct syntax. Copy it to your clipboard.
- Paste and fill down - Paste into Excel and lock the table range with $ signs (e.g. $A$2:$D$100) before filling the formula down a column.
Before You Start
- The lookup column must be the FIRST column of your table range.
- Column numbers count from the start of the range, not from column A.
- Sort is not required for exact match (FALSE), only for approximate match (TRUE).
Alternative Methods
- XLOOKUP (Excel 365) - Looks in any direction, defaults to exact match, and supports a built-in not-found message. Use the XLOOKUP generator if your Excel supports it.
- INDEX + MATCH - Works in every Excel version and can look left of the key column. Build one with the INDEX MATCH generator.