EXCEL VLOOKUP FUNCTION

Introduction

In today’s competitive job market, proficiency in Microsoft Excel is a valuable skill sought by employers across various industries. Excel functions play a pivotal role in data analysis and I continuously strive to excel in my understanding and application of these functions. In this article, we’ll explore some of the most frequently asked Excel functions in job interviews.

Lets start by discussing the VLOOKUP function. The VLOOKUP (Vertical Lookup) function allows you to search for a specific value in a vertical column (usually within a table or range) and once found, it retrieves related information from the same row.

Sample Question

What is the syntax of VLOOKUP function. What are its limitations and what alternatives can you use to overcome them?

Answer: The arguments for VLOOUP are;

• Lookup value : value you're looking for
• Table array: range of data where to look for your lookup value
• Column index number: column inside the lookup range that you want to return a value from
• Range lookup: lets you specify whether you want to return an exact match or approximate match

Limitations of VLOOKUP

• It can only look from left to right
• Column index number is manually typed which can cause errors
• If range lookup is not specified, approximate match is the default which is a common cause for getting wrong results.

Better alternatives

• INDEX MATCH
• XLOOKUP

In my next articles, we’ll look at INDEX MATCH function. Stay tuned for more insights on mastering data analysis tools. Happy learning!