FREE PRACTICAL LESSON · OCTOBER 3, 2026

How to use XLOOKUP for an exact match

A lookup is useful when you know a reliable ID and want one related value. It works best when each ID represents one record. Before writing a formula, name three things: what you know, where to look, and what you want back.

Try a three-row example

Type this fictional catalog into Excel starting at A1. Enter Q202 in E2.

In F2, enter:

=XLOOKUP(E2,$A$2:$A$4,$C$2:$C$4,"Not found")

The result should be 16. E2 supplies the ID. A2:A4 is the search column. C2:C4 is the price column. The final text makes a missing ID visible. Exact matching is the default.

Check before trusting the number

Find Q202 in the source and confirm its price. Change the input to Q203: the answer should be 5. Try Q999: the result should be Not found. Those checks test known values and a missing value; a plausible number alone is weak evidence.

Check for duplicate IDs as well. Returning the first match does not prove the ID is unique. Preserve leading zeros when they belong to an identifier, and look for extra spaces or different data types if a match is unexpectedly missing.

Which Excel versions work?

XLOOKUP is available in Microsoft 365, Excel 2021, Excel 2024, and Excel for the web. It is unavailable in Excel 2016 and 2019. Commas and function names can vary with regional settings.

For several matching transactions that must be added together, consider SUMIF or SUMIFS instead. A lookup and a conditional total answer different questions.

Continue with guided practice

Find a matching record, return the value you need, and check missing or duplicate IDs with a worked Excel exercise. The downloadable pack costs $6.99 before any applicable tax.

See the course and included files

Sources and further help

Microsoft: XLOOKUP

Examples here are original and fictional. Browse all free lessons.