Are you familiar with the VLOOKUP formula? It stands for “vertical lookup” and allows you to search for a key in the first column of a specified range, then returns the value in the specified cell in the range.
Just like in Excel, Google Sheets also allows you to search for a key in another sheet or even in another Google Sheets file. Let’s dive into the formula for Google Sheets.
Syntax of VLOOKUP in Google Sheets
VLOOKUP(search_key, range, index, [sorted])search_key: represents the key or value you are searching for.range: the data considered for the search. The first column of the selected range is where the search key will be looked for.index: represents the first column of the range where the search key will be looked for. The index refers to the position of the column – 1, 2, 3, and so on.[sorted]: indicates if the first column being searched is sorted. It is set to “true” by default, which returns the closest match. If you want an exact match, you need to specify “false.”
Now, let’s see how the VLOOKUP formula works in Google Sheets with a practical example.
Imagine you are in charge of an international internship program. To manage this program, you need to collect, organize, and update data about the students, universities, and companies where the internships take place. You are currently updating the ‘STUDENT INFO’ tab in your Google Sheets file. Here, you have distributed the student-related data across three tabs or sheets titled ‘MAIN’, ‘FILE’, and ‘PROGRAM.’
Since you will be using the first tab for most daily tasks, you want to keep the basic student information there: student ID, student’s university, and student’s email address. Let’s see how you can perform a VLOOKUP search for the email address in Google Sheets from your other tab ‘FILE.’
Here are the steps to follow:
- Open the Google Sheet where you want to add the results of your VLOOKUP search. In this example, I will add my data to the ‘STUDENT INFO’ file, under a column named ‘Email.’
For more detailed instructions and examples, you can check out the full article on Crawlan.com.
Now you have the power to perform VLOOKUP searches in Google Sheets, even across multiple sheets or workbooks. Take advantage of this feature to streamline your data management and make your life easier. Happy searching!
