If you are looking for some of the easiest ways to compare 4 columns in Excel VLOOKUP, then you are in the right place. Sometimes it becomes necessary to compare 4 columns for matching up similar data in these columns. By following this article, it will be easier for you to compare 4 columns easily in Excel.
Compare 4 Columns in Excel Using VLOOKUP: 7 Effective Ways
Here, I have some data from two companies to compare if their Product and Color of items are similar or not. So, I have a total of 4 columns, and I want to compare these columns and find out the similarities. Let’s dive into the article and get to know the ways of comparing 4 columns in Excel.
Method-1: Comparing 4 columns Using COUNTIF Function
You can compare 4 columns using the COUNTIF function and the IF function. At first, you have to add some extra columns; Combined 1, Combined 2, Helper. Then maintain the following steps.
Step-01:
- Select the output Cell D5 in the Combined 1 column.
- Type the following formula
=B5&" "&C5Here, & will join the texts in Cell B5 and C5
- Press ENTER.
- Drag down the Fill Handle.
Then all of the texts of the Product and Color column will be combined in the Combined 1 column.
Step-02:
- Select the output Cell G5 in the Combined 2 column.
- Type the following formula.
=E5&" "&F5Here, & will join the texts in Cell E5 and F5
- Press ENTER.
- Drag down the Fill Handle.
Then you will get the following results in the Combined 2 column.
Step-03:
- Select the output Cell H5 in the Helper column.
- Type the following formula.
=IF(COUNTIF(D5:D13,G5)>0,"MATCH","NOT MATCH")Formula Breakdown
- This logical input COUNTIF(D5:D13, G5)>0 will return 1 when the texts in Combined 1 and Combined 2 match.
- Then the IF function will return MATCH otherwise NOT MATCH.
- Press ENTER.
- Drag down the Fill Handle.
Result:
After that, you will get the following results where for not matching in these 4 columns you will get NOT MATCH.
Method-2: Comparing 4 columns Using IF-AND Function
You can compare 4 columns using the Logical IF function and the AND function. You have to add an extra column Helper.
Step-01:
- Select the output Cell G5 in the Helper column.
- Type the following formula.
=IF(AND(B5=E5,C5=F5),"MATCH","NOT MATCH")Formula Breakdown
- This logical input AND(B5=E5, C5=F5) will return TRUE when all the conditions become true.
- Then the IF function will return MATCH otherwise NOT MATCH.
Step-02:
- Press ENTER.
- Drag down the Fill Handle.
Result:
In this way, you will get the following results where for not matching in these 4 columns you will get NOT MATCH.
Method-3: Using Conditional Formatting
You can compare 4 columns using Conditional Formatting easily.
Steps:
- Select the 4 columns excluding the Header.
- Go to Home Tab>>Conditional Formatting Drop Down>>New Rule Option.
Then the New Formatting Rule Dialog Box will appear.
- Select Use a formula to determine which cells to format Option.
- Type the following formula in the Format values where this formula is true:
=$B5&$C5=$E5&$F5- After that, select the Format Option.
Then Format Cells Wizard will pop up
- Now, select the Fill Option.
- Then, choose any color as per your choice.
- Press OK.
Result:
After that, you will get a data table where the same value containing cells in these 4 columns will be filled up with the color.
Method-4: Using MATCH and CONCATENATE Function
You can compare 4 columns using the CONCATENATE function, the MATCH function, the IF function, and the ISNA function. You have to add an extra Helper column.
Step-01:
- Select the output Cell G5 in the Helper column.
- Type the following formula.
=ISNA(IF(MATCH(CONCATENATE(B5,C5),CONCATENATE($E$5:$E$10,$F$5:$F$10),0),TRUE,FALSE))Formula Breakdown
- The CONCATENATE function will join up the texts in the columns.
- The MATCH function will determine whether the combined texts of the two columns will match up with the combined texts of the other two columns.
- The IF function will give TRUE if the texts in the columns match otherwise FALSE.
- The ISNA function checks whether the value is determined or not. If the value cannot be determined or does not match then it will return TRUE otherwise FALSE.
Step-02:
- Press ENTER.
- Drag down the Fill Handle.
Result:
You will get TRUE for not matching up here because of using The ISNA function as below.
Method-5: Using VLOOKUP Function
You can compare 4 columns using the VLOOKUP function, the IF function, and the ISNA function. You have to add an extra column Helper.
Step-01:
- Select the output Cell G5 in the Helper column.
- Type the following formula.
=IF(ISNA(AND(VLOOKUP(E5,$B$5:$B$13,1,FALSE)<>" ",VLOOKUP(F5,$C$5:$C$13,1,FALSE)<>" ")),"FALSE","TRUE")Formula Breakdown
- The VLOOKUP function will look up the value in Cell E5 in Column B and the value in Cell F5 in Column C.
- If the value cannot be determined or does not match then The ISNA function will return TRUE otherwise FALSE.
- The IF function will convert TRUE to FALSE and FALSE to TRUE.
Step-02:
- Press ENTER.
- Drag down the Fill Handle.
Result:
In this way, you will get the following results where for not matching in these 4 columns you will get FALSE.
Method-6: Using INDEX-MATCH Function
You can compare 4 columns using the MATCH function, the INDEX function, the IF function, and the ISNA function. You have to add an extra column Helper.
Step-01:
- Select the output Cell G5 in the Helper column.
- Type the following formula.
=IF(ISNA(AND(INDEX($B$5:$B$13,MATCH(E5,$B$5:$B$13,0))<>" ",INDEX($C$5:C$13,MATCH(F5,$C$5:$C$13,0))<>" ")),"FALSE","TRUE")Formula Breakdown
- The MATCH function will look up the value in Cell E5 in Column B and the value in Cell F5 in Column C.
- Then the result will be used by the INDEX function.
Step-02:
- Press ENTER.
- Drag down the Fill Handle.
Result:
After that, you will get the following results where for not matching in these 4 columns you will get FALSE.
Method-7: Using IFERROR-VLOOKUP Function
Suppose, now you have to compare the Old Products and New Arrival columns of the two companies. That means all of the four columns contain the same type of items.
Here, I will compare 4 columns using the IFERROR function, and the VLOOKUP function. You have to add an extra column Helper.
Step-01:
- Select the output Cell G5 in the Helper column.
- Type the following formula.
=IFERROR(VLOOKUP(IFERROR(VLOOKUP(IFERROR(VLOOKUP(E5,$B$5:$B$13,1,FALSE),"FALSE"),$C$5:$C$13,1,FALSE),"FALSE"),$F$5:$F$10,1,FALSE),"FALSE")Formula Breakdown
- VLOOKUP(E5,$B$5:$B$13,1, FALSE is the comparison of Column E and Column B.
- $C$5:$C$13 is the range to lookup against the value gained by the previous comparison.
- Then this value will be compared with the range $F$5:$F$10.
- IFERROR is used to replace N/A with FALSE.
Step-02:
- Press ENTER.
- Drag down the Fill Handle.
Result:
After that, you will get the following results where for not matching in these 4 columns you will get FALSE. And when the columns have matched the text in the cells will appear then.
Practice Section
For doing practice by yourself we have provided a Practice section like below in a sheet named “Practice”. Please do it by yourself.
Download Workbook
Conclusion
In this article, I tried to cover the easiest ways to compare 4 columns in Excel VLOOKUP effectively. Hope you will find it useful. If you have any suggestions or questions feel free to share them with us. Goodbye!
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