Hi all
I do not see why I need to use Index or Match function anymore since Xlookup can do the job even simpler. Are they any examples in which I can not use Xlookup and I have to use Index or Match?
Thank you very much.
Hi all
I do not see why I need to use Index or Match function anymore since Xlookup can do the job even simpler. Are they any examples in which I can not use Xlookup and I have to use Index or Match?
Thank you very much.
This is one of those questions that is hellishly difficult to answer!
In brief, yes, there will be occasions when INDEX MATCH might still be preferable, however it will be in complex situations.
The slightly longer answer is that you should consider each function a part of your toolkit. XLOOKUP, VLOOKUP and HLOOKUP, LOOKUP and INDEX MATCH all still have their part to play.
The bottom line is this: if you can do something easier with XLOOKUP than you once did with INDEX MATCH, then go for it. I would not waste time 'updating' formulae just so that they use XLOOKUP instead, though: just start using it in preference until you hit a stumbling block.
Ali
Enthusiastic self-taught user of MS Excel who's always learning!
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Another consideration is that you might need backwards-compatibility, i.e. if your file is to be used by someone who does not have XLOOKUP available. YOU would not have it if you are still using XL2010, as your profile states, so please update your profile by clicking on User CP in the top menu.
Pete
.... Or any standalone version before Excel 2021(!), according to the support webpage.
And efficiency might be another issue. (Although I wouldn't lose sleep over it, usually.)
Some people claim that VLOOKUP is inefficient. I think they claim that it reads the entire multicolumn range (second parameter) into memory, unnecessarily.
I never vetted such claims myself. I usually take them with a grain of salt.
But it begs the question: Does XLOOKUP read the entire "return range" (third parameter) into memory, again unnecessarily?
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