VLOOKUP Function
Purpose
Searches vertically down the leftmost column of a table range and returns a value in the same row from a specified column index.
Syntax
EXCEL
=VLOOKUP(lookup_value, table_array, col_index_num, [range_lookup])
Arguments Breakdown
| Argument | Required? | Description |
|---|---|---|
lookup_value |
Required | The value to locate in the first column |
table_array |
Required | The entire table range (e.g. $A$2:$E$100) |
col_index_num |
Required | The 1-based column number to return |
range_lookup |
Optional | FALSE = Exact match (Mandatory for analytics), TRUE = Approximate |
Warning
Always specify FALSE for exact match in business analytics!