VLOOKUP in Google Sheets, Classic Lookup
By Szabó Gergő · Updated
Sheets VLOOKUP needs the key in the first column of the range. Sorted approximate match is easy to get wrong.
Syntax and arguments
=VLOOKUP(search_key, range, index, [is_sorted])- search_key
- Value to find in the first column.
- range
- Table including the key and return columns.
- index
- 1-based column number to return.
- is_sorted
- FALSE for exact match. TRUE is approximate.
VLOOKUP examples
Key in G2, table A:C.
=VLOOKUP(G2, A2:C200, 3, FALSE)Returns column C for an exact key in A.
The SKU may be absent.
=IFNA(VLOOKUP(G2, A2:C200, 3, FALSE), "Missing")IFNA is cleaner than IFERROR for a miss.
Every match, not the first.
=FILTER(C2:C200, A2:A200=G2)Returns every match, not the first only.
Common mistakes
Looking left
The key must be the first column. Use XLOOKUP or FILTER instead.
Omitting FALSE
TRUE assumes a sorted key and can return the wrong row.
Hungarian separators in an English file
A Hungarian spreadsheet locale may want semicolons. Match the file language.
VLOOKUP FAQ
Why can VLOOKUP not look left?
The key must be the first column of range. Use XLOOKUP or FILTER instead.
Do I need FALSE?
Yes for IDs. TRUE assumes a sorted key and can return the wrong row.
Sheets or Excel VLOOKUP?
Same arguments. Sheets locale may want semicolons if the spreadsheet language is Hungarian.