Excel check if value in cell

Excel has a number of formulas that help you use your data in useful ways. For example, you can get an output based on whether or not a cell meets certain specifications. Right now, we’ll focus on a function called “if cell contains, then”. Let’s look at an example.

Jump To Specific Section:

1. Explanation: If Cell Contains
2. If cell contains any value, then return a value
3. If cell contains text/number, then return a value
4. If cell contains specific text, then return a value
5. If cell contains specific text, then return a value (case-sensitive)
6. If cell does not contain specific text, then return a value
7. If cell contains one of many text strings, then return a value
8. If cell contains several of many text strings, then return a value

Excel Formula: If cell contains

Generic formula 

=IF(ISNUMBER(SEARCH("abc",A1)),A1,"")

=IF(ISNUMBER(SEARCH("abc",B5)),B5,"")

If you want to check whether or not the A1 cell contains the text “Example”, you can run a formula that will output “Yes” or “No” in the B1 cell. There are a number of different ways you can put these formulas to use. At the time of writing, Excel is able to return the following variations:

• If cell contains any value
  
• If cell contains text
• If cell contains number
• If cell contains specific text
• If cell contains certain text string
• If cell contains one of many text strings
• If cell contains several strings

Using these scenarios, you’re able to check if a cell contains text, value, and more. 

Explanation: If Cell Contains

=IF(ISNUMBER(SEARCH("abc",B5)),B5,""). Assuming cells run to B5

ISNUMBER(SEARCH("abc",B5))

Read article: Excel efficiency: 11 Excel Formulas To Increase Your Productivity

Using “if cell contains” formulas in Excel

The guides below were written using the latest Microsoft Excel 2019 for Windows 10. Some steps may vary if you’re using a different version or platform. Contact our experts if you need any further assistance.

1. If cell contains any value, then return a value

This scenario allows you to return values based on whether or not a cell contains any value at all. For example, we’ll be checking whether or not the A1 cell is blank or not, and then return a value depending on the result.

• Select the output cell, and use the following formula: =IF(cell<>»», value_to_return, «»).
• For our example, the cell we want to check is A2, and the return value will be No. In this scenario, you’d change the formula to =IF(A2<>»», «No», «»). 
• Since the A2 cell isn’t blank, the formula will return “No” in the output cell. If the cell you’re checking is blank, the output cell will also remain blank.

2. If cell contains text/number, then return a value

With the formula below, you can return a specific value if the target cell contains any text or number. The formula will ignore the opposite data types.

Check for text

• To check if a cell contains text, select the output cell, and use the following formula: =IF(ISTEXT(cell), value_to_return, «»).
• For our example, the cell we want to check is A2, and the return value will be Yes. In this scenario, you’d change the formula to =IF(ISTEXT(A2), «Yes», «»). 
  
  
• Because the A2 cell does contain text and not a number or date, the formula will return “Yes” into the output cell.

Check for a number or date

• To check if a cell contains a number or date, select the output cell, and use the following formula: =IF(ISNUMBER(cell), value_to_return, «»).
• For our example, the cell we want to check is D2, and the return value will be Yes. In this scenario, you’d change the formula to =IF(ISNUMBER(D2), «Yes», «»). 
  
  
• Because the D2 cell does contain a number and not text, the formula will return “Yes” into the output cell.

3. If cell contains specific text, then return a value

To find a cell that contains specific text, use the formula below.

• Select the output cell, and use the following formula: =IF(cell=»text», value_to_return, «»).
• For our example, the cell we want to check is A2, the text we’re looking for is “example”, and the return value will be Yes. In this scenario, you’d change the formula to =IF(A2=»example», «Yes», «»). 
  
  
• Because the A2 cell does consist of the text “example”, the formula will return “Yes” into the output cell.

4. If cell contains specific text, then return a value (case-sensitive)

To find a cell that contains specific text, use the formula below. This version is case-sensitive, meaning that only cells with an exact match will return the specified value.

• Select the output cell, and use the following formula: =IF(EXACT(cell,»case_sensitive_text»), «value_to_return», «»).
• For our example, the cell we want to check is A2, the text we’re looking for is “EXAMPLE”, and the return value will be Yes. In this scenario, you’d change the formula to =IF(EXACT(A2,»EXAMPLE»), «Yes», «»).
• Because the A2 cell does consist of the text “EXAMPLE” with the matching case, the formula will return “Yes” into the output cell.

5. If cell does not contain specific text, then return a value

The opposite version of the previous section. If you want to find cells that don’t contain a specific text, use this formula.

• Select the output cell, and use the following formula: =IF(cell=»text», «», «value_to_return»).
• For our example, the cell we want to check is A2, the text we’re looking for is “example”, and the return value will be No. In this scenario, you’d change the formula to =IF(A2=»example», «», «No»).
  
• Because the A2 cell does consist of the text “example”, the formula will return a blank cell. On the other hand, other cells return “No” into the output cell.

6. If cell contains one of many text strings, then return a value

This formula should be used if you’re looking to identify cells that contain at least one of many words you’re searching for.

• Select the output cell, and use the following formula: =IF(OR(ISNUMBER(SEARCH(«string1», cell)), ISNUMBER(SEARCH(«string2», cell))), value_to_return, «»).
• For our example, the cell we want to check is A2. We’re looking for either “tshirt” or “hoodie”, and the return value will be Valid. In this scenario, you’d change the formula to =IF(OR(ISNUMBER(SEARCH(«tshirt»,A2)),ISNUMBER(SEARCH(«hoodie»,A2))),»Valid «,»»).
  
  
• Because the A2 cell does contain one of the text values we searched for, the formula will return “Valid” into the output cell.

To extend the formula to more search terms, simply modify it by adding more strings using ISNUMBER(SEARCH(«string», cell)).

7. If cell contains several of many text strings, then return a value

This formula should be used if you’re looking to identify cells that contain several of the many words you’re searching for. For example, if you’re searching for two terms, the cell needs to contain both of them in order to be validated.

• Select the output cell, and use the following formula: =IF(AND(ISNUMBER(SEARCH(«string1»,cell)), ISNUMBER(SEARCH(«string2″,cell))), value_to_return,»»).
• For our example, the cell we want to check is A2. We’re looking for “hoodie” and “black”, and the return value will be Valid. In this scenario, you’d change the formula to =IF(AND(ISNUMBER(SEARCH(«hoodie»,A2)),ISNUMBER(SEARCH(«black»,A2))),»Valid «,»»).
  
  
• Because the A2 cell does contain both of the text values we searched for, the formula will return “Valid” to the output cell.

Final thoughts

We hope this article was useful to you in learning how to use “if cell contains” formulas in Microsoft Excel. Now, you can check if any cells contain values, text, numbers, and more. This allows you to navigate, manipulate and analyze your data efficiently.

We’re glad you’re read the article up to here Thank you

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In this example, the goal is to use a formula to check if a specific value exists in a range. The easiest way to do this is to use the COUNTIF function to count occurences of a value in a range, then use the count to create a final result.

COUNTIF function

The COUNTIF function counts cells that meet supplied criteria. The generic syntax looks like this:

=COUNTIF(range,criteria)

Range is the range of cells to test, and criteria is a condition that should be tested. COUNTIF returns the number of cells in range that meet the condition defined by criteria. If no cells meet criteria, COUNTIF returns zero. In the example shown, we can use COUNTIF to count the values we are looking for like this

COUNTIF(data,E5)

Once the named range data (B5:B16) and cell E5 have been evaluated, we have:

=COUNTIF(data,E5)
=COUNTIF(B5:B16,"Blue")
=1

COUNTIF returns 1 because «Blue» occurs in the range B5:B16 once. Next, we use the greater than operator (>) to run a simple test to force a TRUE or FALSE result:

=COUNTIF(data,B5)>0 // returns TRUE or FALSE

By itself, the formula above will return TRUE or FALSE. The last part of the problem is to return a «Yes» or «No» result. To handle this, we nest the formula above into the IF function like this:

=IF(COUNTIF(data,E5)>0,"Yes","No")

This is the formula shown in the worksheet above. As the formula is copied down, COUNTIF returns a count of the value in column E. If the count is greater than zero, the IF function returns «Yes». If the count is zero, IF returns «No».

Slightly abbreviated

It is possible to shorten this formula slightly and get the same result like this:

=IF(COUNTIF(data,E5),"Yes","No")

Here, we have remove the «>0» test. Instead, we simply return the count to IF as the logical_test. This works because Excel will treat any non-zero number as TRUE when the number is evaluated as a Boolean.

Testing for a partial match

To test a range to see if it contains a substring (a partial match), you can add a wildcard to the formula. For example, if you have a value to look for in cell C1, and you want to check the range A1:A100 for partial matches, you can configure COUNTIF to look for the value in C1 anywhere in a cell by concatenating asterisks on both sides:

=COUNTIF(A1:A100,"*"&C1&"*")>0

The asterisk (*) is a wildcard for one or more characters. By concatenating asterisks before and after the value in C1, the formula will count the text in C1 anywhere it appears in each cell of the range. To return «Yes» or «No», nest the formula inside the IF function as above.

An alternative formula using MATCH

As an alternative, you can use a formula that uses the MATCH function with the ISNUMBER function instead of COUNTIF:

=ISNUMBER(MATCH(value,range,0))

The MATCH function returns the position of a match (as a number) if found, and #N/A if not found. By wrapping MATCH inside ISNUMBER, the final result will be TRUE when MATCH finds a match and FALSE when MATCH returns #N/A.

After checking if a cell value exists in a column, I need to get the value of the cell next to the matching cell. For instance, I check if the value in cell A1 exists in column B, and assuming it matches B5, then I want the value in cell C5.

To solve the first half of the problem, I did this…

=IF(ISERROR(MATCH(A1,B:B, 0)), "No Match", "Match")

…and it worked. Then, thanks to an earlier answer on SO, I was also able to obtain the row number of the matching cell:

=IF(ISERROR(MATCH(A1,B:B, 0)), "No Match", "Match on Row " & MATCH(A1,B:B, 0))

So naturally, to get the value of the next cell, I tried…

=IF(ISERROR(MATCH(A1,B:B, 0)), "No Match", C&MATCH(A1,B:B, 0))

…and it doesn’t work.

What am I missing? How do I append the column number to the row number returned to achieve the desired result?

Author: Oscar Cronquist Article last updated on February 01, 2023

This article demonstrates several ways to check if a cell contains any value based on a list. The first example shows how to check if any of the values in the list is in the cell.

The remaining examples show formulas that also return the matching values. You may need different formulas based on the Excel version you are using.

Read this article If cell equals value from list to match the entire cell to any value from a list. To match a single cell to a single value read this: If cell contains text

To check if a cell contains all values in the list read this: If cell contains multiple values

1. Check if the cell contains any value in the list

The image above shows an array formula in cell C3 that checks if cell B3 contains at least one of the values in List (E3:E7), it returns «Yes» if any of the values are found in column B and returns nothing if the cell contains none of the values.

For example, cell B3 contains XBF which is found in cell E7. Cell B4 contains text ZDS found in cell E6. Cell C5 contains no values in the list.

=IF(OR(COUNTIF(B3,»*»&$E$3:$E$7&»*»)), «Yes», «»)

You need to enter this formula as an array formula if you are not an Excel 365 subscriber. There is another formula below that doesn’t need to be entered as an array formula, however, it is slightly larger and more complicated.

1. Type formula in cell C3.
2. Press and hold CTRL + SHIFT simultaneously.
3.  Press Enter once.
4. Release all keys.

Excel adds curly brackets to the formula automatically if you successfully entered the array formula. Don’t enter the curly brackets yourself.

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1.1 Explaining formula in cell C3

Step 1 — Check if the cell contains any of the values in the list

The COUNTIF function lets you count cells based on a condition, however, it also allows you to count cells based on multiple conditions if you use a cell range instead of a cell.

COUNTIF(range, criteria)

The criteria argument utilizes a beginning and ending asterisk in order to match a text string and not the entire cell value, asterisks are one of two wildcard characters that you are allowed to use.

The ampersands concatenate the asterisks to cell range E3:E7.

COUNTIF(B3,»*»&$E$3:$E$7&»*»)

becomes

COUNTIF(«LNU, YNO, XBF», {«*MVN*»; «*QLL*»; «*BQX*»; «*ZDS*»; «*XBF*»})

and returns this array

{0; 0; 0; 0; 1}

which tells us that the last value in the list is found in cell B3.

Step 2 — Return TRUE if at least one value is 1

The OR function returns TRUE if at least one of the values in the array is TRUE, the numerical equivalent to TRUE is 1.

OR({0; 0; 0; 0; 1})

returns TRUE.

Step 3 — Return Yes or nothing

The IF function then returns «Yes» if the logical test evaluates to TRUE and nothing if the logical test returns FALSE.

IF(TRUE, «Yes», «»)

returns «Yes» in cell B3.

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Regular formula

The following formula is quite similar to the formula above except that it is a regular formula and it has an additional INDEX function.

=IF(OR(INDEX(COUNTIF(B3,»*»&$E$3:$E$7&»*»),)), «Yes», «»)

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2. Display matches if the cell contains text from a list

The image above demonstrates a formula that checks if a cell contains a value in the list and then returns that value. If multiple values match then all matching values in the list are displayed.

For example, cell B3 contains «ZDS, YNO, XBF» and cell range E3:E7 has two values that match, «ZDS» and «XBF».

Formula in cell C3:

=TEXTJOIN(«, «, TRUE, IF(COUNTIF(B3, «*»&$E$3:$E$7&»*»), $E$3:$E$7, «»))

The TEXTJOIN function is available for Office 2019 and Office 365 subscribers. You will get a #NAME error if your Excel version is missing this function. Office 2019 users may need to enter this formula as an array formula.

The next formula works with most Excel versions.

Array formula in cell C3:

=INDEX($E$3:$E$7, MATCH(1, COUNTIF(B3, «*»&$E$3:$E$7&»*»), 0))

However, it only returns the first match. There is another formula below that returns all matching values, check it out.

How to enter an array formula

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2.1 Explaining formula in cell C3

Step 1 — Count cells containing text strings

The COUNTIF function lets you count cells based on a condition, we are going to use multiple conditions. I am going to use asterisks to make the COUNTIF function check for a partial match.

The asterisk is one of two wild card characters that you can use, it matches 0 (zero) to any number of any characters.

COUNTIF(B3, «*»&$E$3:$E$7&»*»)

becomes

COUNTIF(«ZDS, YNO, XBF», {«*MVN*»; «*QLL*»; «*BQX*»; «*ZDS*»; «*XBF*»})

and returns {1; 0; 0; 0; 1}.

This array contains as many values as there values in the list, the position of each value in the array matches the position of the value in the list. This means that we can tell from the array that the first value and the last value is found in cell B3.

Step 2 — Return the actual value

The IF function returns one value if the logical test is TRUE and another value if the logical test is FALSE.

IF(logical_test, [value_if_true], [value_if_false])

This allows us to create an array containing values that exists in cell B3.

IF(COUNTIF(B3, «*»&$E$3:$E$7&»*»), $E$3:$E$7, «»)

becomes

IF(COUNTIF(«ZDS, YNO, XBF», {«*MVN*»; «*QLL*»; «*BQX*»; «*ZDS*»; «*XBF*»}), {«*MVN*»; «*QLL*»; «*BQX*»; «*ZDS*»; «*XBF*»}, «»)

and returns {«»;»»;»»;»ZDS»;»XBF»}.

Step 3 — Concatenate values in array

The TEXTJOIN function allows you to combine text strings from multiple cell ranges and also use delimiting characters if you want.

TEXTJOIN(delimiter, ignore_empty, text1, [text2], …)

TEXTJOIN(«, «, TRUE, IF(COUNTIF(B3, «*»&$E$3:$E$7&»*»), $E$3:$E$7, «»))

becomes

TEXTJOIN(«, «, TRUE, {«»;»»;»»;»ZDS»;»XBF»})

and returns text strings ZDS, XBF.

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3. Display matches if cell contains text from a list (Earlier Excel versions)

The image above demonstrates a formula that returns multiple matches if the cell contains values from a list. This array formula works with most Excel versions.

Array formula in cell C3:

=IFERROR(INDEX($G$3:$G$7, SMALL(IF(COUNTIF($B3, «*»&$G$3:$G$7&»*»), MATCH(ROW($G$3:$G$7), ROW($G$3:$G$7)), «»), COLUMNS($A$1:A1))), «»)

How to enter an array formula

Copy cell C3 and paste to cell range C3:E15.

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3.1 Explaining formula in cell C3

Step 1 — Identify matching values in cell

The COUNTIF function lets you count cells based on a condition, we are going to use a cell range instead. This will return an array of values.

COUNTIF($B3, «*»&$G$3:$G$7&»*»)

becomes

COUNTIF(«ZDS, YNO, XBF», {«*MVN*»; «*QLL*»; «*BQX*»; «*ZDS*»; «*XBF*»})

and returns {0; 0; 0; 1; 1}.

Step 2 — Calculate relative positions of matching values

The IF function returns one value if the logical test is TRUE and another value if the logical test is FALSE.

IF(logical_test, [value_if_true], [value_if_false])

This allows us to create an array containing values representing row numbers.

IF(COUNTIF($B3, «*»&$G$3:$G$7&»*»), MATCH(ROW($G$3:$G$7), ROW($G$3:$G$7)), «»)

becomes

IF({0; 0; 0; 2; 1}, MATCH(ROW($G$3:$G$7), ROW($G$3:$G$7)), «»)

becomes

IF({0; 0; 0; 2; 1}, {1; 2; 3; 4; 5}, «»)

and returns {«»; «»; «»; 4; 5}.

Step 3 — Extract the k-th smallest number

I am going to use the SMALL function to be able to extract one value in each cell in the next step.

SMALL(array, k)

SMALL(IF(COUNTIF($B3, «*»&$G$3:$G$7&»*»), MATCH(ROW($G$3:$G$7), ROW($G$3:$G$7)), «»), COLUMNS($A$1:A1)))

becomes

SMALL({«»; «»; «»; 4; 5}, COLUMNS($A$1:A1)))

The COLUMNS function calculates the number of columns in a cell range, however, the cell reference in our formula grows when you copy the cell and paste to adjacent cells to the right.

SMALL({0; 0; 0; 4; 5}, COLUMNS($A$1:A1)))

becomes

SMALL({«»; «»; «»; 4; 5}, 1)

and returns 4.

Step 4 — Return value based on row number

The INDEX function returns a value from a cell range or array, you specify which value based on a row and column number. Both the [row_num] and [column_num] are optional.

INDEX(array, [row_num], [column_num])

INDEX($G$3:$G$7, SMALL(IF(COUNTIF($B3, «*»&$G$3:$G$7&»*»), MATCH(ROW($G$3:$G$7), ROW($G$3:$G$7)), «»), COLUMNS($A$1:A1)))

becomes

INDEX($G$3:$G$7, 4)

becomes

INDEX({«MVN»;»QLL»;»BQX»;»ZDS»;»XBF»}, 4)

and returns «ZDS» in cell C3.

Step 5 — Remove error values

The IFERROR function lets you catch most errors in Excel formulas except #SPILL! errors. Be careful when using the IFERROR function, it may make it much harder spotting formula errors.

IFERROR(value, value_if_error)

There are two arguments in the IFERROR function. The value argument is returned if it is not evaluating to an error. The value_if_error argument is returned if the value argument returns an error.

IFERROR(INDEX($G$3:$G$7, SMALL(IF(COUNTIF($B3, «*»&$G$3:$G$7&»*»), MATCH(ROW($G$3:$G$7), ROW($G$3:$G$7)), «»), COLUMNS($A$1:A1))), «»)

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4. Filter delimited values not in the list (Excel 365)

The formula in cell C3 lists values in cell B3 that are not in the List specified in cell range E3:E7. The formula returns #CALC! error if all values are in the list, see cell C14 as an example.

Excel 365 dynamic array formula in cell C3:

=LET(z,TRIM(TEXTSPLIT(B3,,»,»)),TEXTJOIN(«, «,TRUE,FILTER(z,NOT(COUNTIF($E$3:$E$7,z)))))

4.1 Explaining formula

Step 1 — Split values with a delimiting character

The TEXTSPLIT function splits a string into an array based on delimiting values.

Function syntax: TEXTSPLIT(Input_Text, col_delimiter, [row_delimiter], [Ignore_Empty])

TEXTSPLIT(B3,,»,»)

becomes

TEXTSPLIT(«ZDS, VTO, XBF»,,»,»)

and returns

{«ZDS»; » VTO»; » XBF»}

Step 2 — Remove leading and trailing spaces

The TRIM function deletes all blanks or space characters except single blanks between words in a cell value.

Function syntax: TRIM(text)

TRIM(TEXTSPLIT(B3,,»,»))

becomes

TRIM({«ZDS»; » VTO»; » XBF»})

and returns

{«ZDS»; «VTO»; «XBF»}

Step 3 — Check if values are in list

The COUNTIF function calculates the number of cells that is equal to a condition.

Function syntax: COUNTIF(range, criteria)

COUNTIF($E$3:$E$7,TRIM(TEXTSPLIT(B3,,»,»)))

becomes

COUNTIF({«MVN»;»QLL»;»BQX»;»ZDS»;»XBF»},{«ZDS»; «VTO»; «XBF»})

and returns

{1; 0; 1}

These numbers indicate if a value is found in the list, zero means not in the list and 1 or higher means that the value is in the list at least once.

The number’s position corresponds to the position of the values. {1; 0; 1} — {«ZDS»; «VTO»; «XBF»} meaning «ZDS» and «XBF» are in the list and «VTO» not.

Step 4 — Not

The NOT function returns the boolean opposite to the given argument.

Function syntax: NOT(logical)

NOT(COUNTIF($E$3:$E$7,TRIM(TEXTSPLIT(B3,,»,»))))

becomes

NOT({1; 0; 1})

and returns

{FALSE; TRUE; FALSE}.

0 (zero) is equivalent to FALSE. The boolean opposite is TRUE.

Any other number than 0 (zero) is equivalent to TRUE.  The boolean opposite is FALSE.

Step 5 — Filter

The FILTER function extracts values/rows based on a condition or criteria.

Function syntax: FILTER(array, include, [if_empty])

FILTER(TRIM(TEXTSPLIT(B3,,»,»)),NOT(COUNTIF($E$3:$E$7,TRIM(TEXTSPLIT(B3,,»,»)))))

becomes

FILTER({«ZDS»; «VTO»; «XBF»},{FALSE; TRUE; FALSE})

and returns

«VTO».

Step 6 — Join

The TEXTJOIN function combines text strings from multiple cell ranges.

Function syntax: TEXTJOIN(delimiter, ignore_empty, text1, [text2], …)

TEXTJOIN(«, «,TRUE,FILTER(TRIM(TEXTSPLIT(B3,,»,»)),NOT(COUNTIF($E$3:$E$7,TRIM(TEXTSPLIT(B3,,»,»))))))

becomes

TEXTJOIN(«, «,TRUE,{«VTO»})

and returns

«VTO».

Step 7 — Shorten the formula

The LET function lets you name intermediate calculation results which can shorten formulas considerably and improve performance.

Function syntax: LET(name1, name_value1, calculation_or_name2, [name_value2, calculation_or_name3…])

TEXTJOIN(«, «,TRUE,FILTER(TRIM(TEXTSPLIT(B3,,»,»)),NOT(COUNTIF($E$3:$E$7,TRIM(TEXTSPLIT(B3,,»,»))))))

z — TRIM(TEXTSPLIT(B3,,»,»))

LET(z,TRIM(TEXTSPLIT(B3,,»,»)),TEXTJOIN(«, «,TRUE,FILTER(z,NOT(COUNTIF($E$3:$E$7,z)))))

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Normally, If you want to write an IF formula for text values in combining with the below two logical operators in excel, such as: “equal to” or “not equal to”.

Excel IF function check if a cell contains text(case-insensitive)

By default, IF function is case-insensitive in excel. It means that the logical text for text values will do not recognize case in the IF formulas. For example, the following two IF formulas will get the same results when checking the text values in cells.

=IF(B1="excel","yes","no")
=IF(B1="EXCEl","yes","no")

The IF formula will check the values of cell B1 if it is equal to “excel” word, If it is TRUE, then return “yes”, otherwise return “no”. And the logical test in the above IF formula will check the text values in the logical_test argument, whatever the logical_test values are “Excel”, “eXcel”, or “EXCEL”, the IF formula don’t care about that if the text values is in lowercase or uppercase, It will get the same results at last.

Excel IF function check if a cell contains text (case-sensitive)

If you want to check text values in cells using IF formula in excel (case-sensitive), then you need to create a case-sensitive logical test and then you can use IF function in combination with EXACT function to compare two text values. So if those two text values are exactly the same, then return TRUE. Otherwise return FALSE.

So we can write down the following IF formula combining with EXACT function:

=IF(EXACT(B1,"excel"),"yes","no")

Excel IF function check if part of cell matches specific text

If you want to check if part of text values in cell matches the specific text rather than exact match, to achieve this logic text, you can use IF function in combination with ISNUMBER and SEARCH Function in excel.

Both ISNUMBER and SEARCH functions are case-insensitive in excel.

=IF(ISNUMBER(SEARCH("x",B1)),"good","bad")

For above the IF formula, it will Check to see if B1 contain the letter x.

Also, we can use FIND function to replace the SEARCH function in the above IF formula. It will return the same results.

 Excel IF function with Wildcards text value

If you wan to use wildcard charcter in an IF formula, for example, if any of the values in column B contains “*xc*”, then return “good”, others return “bad”. You can not directly use the wildcard characters in IF formula, and we can use IF function in combination with COUNTIF function. Let’s see the following IF formula:

=IF(COUNTIF(B1:B4,"*xc*"), "good","bad")

• Excel IF Function With Numbers
  If you want to check if a cell values is between two values or checking for the range of numbers or multiple values in cells, at this time, we need to use AND or OR logical function in combination with the logical operator and IF function…

• Excel EXACT function
  The Excel SEARCH function returns the number of the starting location of a substring in a text string.The syntax of the EXACT function is as below:= EXACT (text1,text2)…
• Excel COUNTIF function
  The Excel COUNTIF function will count the number of cells in a range that meet a given criteria.= COUNTIF (range, criteria) …
  
• Excel ISNUMBER function
  The Excel ISNUMBER function returns TRUE if the value in a cell is a numeric value, otherwise it will return FALSE.
• Excel IF function
  The Excel IF function perform a logical test to return one value if the condition is TRUE and return another value if the condition is FALSE….
• Excel SEARCH function
  The Excel SEARCH function returns the number of the starting location of a substring in a text string.…

To check if a cell contains specific text, use ISNUMBER and SEARCH in Excel. There’s no CONTAINS function in Excel.

1. To find the position of a substring in a text string, use the SEARCH function.

Explanation: «duck» found at position 10, «donkey» found at position 1, cell A4 does not contain the word «horse» and «goat» found at position 12.

2. Add the ISNUMBER function. The ISNUMBER function returns TRUE if a cell contains a number, and FALSE if not.

Explanation: cell A2 contains the word «duck», cell A3 contains the word «donkey», cell A4 does not contain the word «horse» and cell A5 contains the word «goat».

3. You can also check if a cell contains specific text, without displaying the substring. Make sure to enclose the substring in double quotation marks.

4. To perform a case-sensitive search, replace the SEARCH function with the FIND function.

Explanation: the formula in cell C3 returns FALSE now. Cell A3 does not contain the word «donkey» but contains the word «Donkey».

5. Add the IF function. The formula below (case-insensitive) returns «Found» if a cell contains specific text, and «Not Found» if not.

6. You can also use IF and COUNTIF in Excel to check if a cell contains specific text. However, the COUNTIF function is always case-insensitive.

Explanation: the formula in cell C2 reduces to =IF(COUNTIF(A2,»*duck*»),»Found»,»Not Found»). An asterisk (*) matches a series of zero or more characters. Visit our page about the COUNTIF function to learn all you need to know about this powerful function.

In this article, we will learn How to Check If Cell Contains Specific Text in Excel.

Scenario :

Identify particular text in a cell or different word in given cells. For example finding the department ID from a database. I think you must have thought to do it manually but time constraint. You are here at the right place to learn How to check if a cell contains specific text.

Generic formula:

The text you are looking for can either be exact or case insensitive. Case insensitive means formula looks for AG can return ag, Ag, AG or aG.

Case insensitive formula:

find_text : text to find

within_text : to find in text

Case sensitive formula:

find_text : text to find

within_text : to find in text

Note:

The above formulas will return True or False. Use the IF function with formula to return YES or NO.

Example :

All of these might be confusing to understand. Let’s understand how to use the function using an example. Here we have some employees to look up by the given department Id. Employee id has name, department id and particular id. Here lookup text is in column D and within text is in Column C.

Use the formula:

As you can see the formula finds aB when you looked for

AB using the Search function. Copy the formula to the rest of the cells using the Ctrl + D or dragging it down from the right bottom (tiny box) of the applied cell.

As you can see we found all the given department id employees using the above method. Now we will check if all cells contain specific text.

Another Example: (Case Sensitive)

Here we have been given a list of Employee Id information in  column A and the look up department is «XG». Here we need to find the department «XG» in all cells. «XG» must be exact as there are two different departments that go by «Xg». So check only «XG» in all cells and return «Yes» if found and return «No» If not.

Use the formula:

As you can see First employee doesn’t belong to «XG» so the formula returns «No» using the FIND function. Copy the formula to the rest of the cells using the Ctrl + D or dragging it down from the right bottom (tiny box) of the applied cell.

As you can see there is only one employee in «XG» department. This formula is useful wherever the database contains multiple information of a row in one cell.

Check if cell Matches multiple text

In the above example we lookup one given text in cells. If we have multiple texts then we use the SUMPRODUCT function, This formula returns TRUE/FALSE as per the value found/ Not found.

Use the formula:

Learn more about this formula. Follow this link How to Check if a string contains one of many texts in Excel.

Here are all the observational notes using the above explained formulas in Excel
Notes :

1. Use the «find_text» in quotes when using hard coded values. Or else use cell reference as explained in the first example.
2. SEARCH is case insensitive function whereas FIND is the case Sensitive dunction.
3. Use the IF function, if you want to get the result in required forms like YES/NO or Found/Notfound.

Hope this article about How to Check If Cell Contains Specific Text in Excel is explanatory. Find more articles on calculating values and related Excel formulas here. If you liked our blogs, share it with your friends on Facebook. And also you can follow us on Twitter and Facebook. We would love to hear from you, do let us know how we can improve, complement or innovate our work and make it better for you. Write to us at info@exceltip.com.

Related Articles :

Searching a String for a Specific Substring in Excel : Find cells if cell contains given word in Excel using the FIND or SEARCH function.

Highlight cells that contain specific text : Highlight cells if cell contains given word in Excel using the formula under Conditional formatting

How to Check if a string contains one of many texts in Excel : lookup cells if cell contains from given multiple words in Excel using the FIND or SEARCH function.

Count Cells that contain specific text : Count number of cells if cell contains given text using one formula in Excel.

How to lookup cells having certain text and returns the Certain Text in Excel : find cells if cell contains certain text and returns required results using the IF function in Excel.

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