Find common characters in multiple strings

[amient2]

Hello, Does anyone know how to find the common characters across multiple strings (cells). I know how to use the Right, Left, etc functions but that will not work because what is common to a group of cells may not always start or end in the same position.

Example 1

Product 1 - 100 pack
Product 1 - 25 pack
Product 1 - 15 pack

Common string = "Product 1"

Example 2

25 lb bag Candy
100 boxes of Candy
1 bag Candy

Common string = "Candy"

Thank you in advance for your help!

[shua79]

are you wanting a VBA solution or a formula? And are you wanting to return a true/false result or the location of the string/cell?

[amient2]

Thanks for replying so quickly! I do not want a true/false response, what I am actually looking for are the common characters because I need them to use for another column.

For example, I will need to use the "Candy" characters in another column for all the "Candy" products.

I would prefer a formula, but if I can do it in VBA or in a database that may work as well.

Thanks again.