How to use IF function in Excel: examples for text, numbers, dates, blanks

In this article, you will learn how to build an Excel IF statement for different types of values as well as how to create multiple IF statements.

IF is one of the most popular and useful functions in Excel. Generally, you use an IF statement to test a condition and to return one value if the condition is met, and another value if the condition is not met.

In this tutorial, we are going to learn the syntax and common usages of the Excel IF function, and then take a closer look at formula examples that will hopefully prove helpful to both beginners and experienced users.

IF function in Excel

IF is one of logical functions that evaluates a certain condition and returns one value if the condition is TRUE, and another value if the condition is FALSE.

The syntax of the IF function is as follows:

IF(logical_test, [value_if_true], [value_if_false])

As you see, IF takes a total of 3 arguments, but only the first one is obligatory, the other two are optional.

Logical_test (required) - the condition to test. Can be evaluated as either TRUE or FALSE.

Value_if_true (optional) - the value to return when the logical test evaluates to TRUE, i.e. the condition is met. If omitted, the value_if_false argument must be defined.

Value_if_false (optional) - the value to return when the logical test evaluates to FALSE, i.e. the condition is not met. If omitted, the value_if_true argument must be set.

Basic IF formula in Excel

To create a simple If then statement in Excel, this is what you need to do:

  • For logical_test, write an expression that returns either TRUE or FALSE. For this, you'd normally use one of the logical operators.
  • For value_if_true, specify what to return when the logical test evaluates to TRUE.
  • For value_if_false, specify what to return when the logical test evaluates to FALSE. Though this argument is optional, we recommend always configuring it to avoid unexpected results. For the detailed explanation, please see Excel IF: things to know.

As an example, let's write a very simple IF formula that checks a value in cell A2 and returns "Good" if the value is greater than 80, "Bad" otherwise:

=IF(B2>80, "Good", "Bad")

This formula goes to C2, and then is copied down through C7: Basic IF formula in Excel.

In case you wish to return a value only when the condition is met (or not met), otherwise - nothing, then use an empty string ("") for the "undefined" argument. For example:

=IF(B2>80, "Good", "")

This formula will return "Good" if the value in A2 is greater than 80, a blank cell otherwise: IF formula to return nothing when the condition is not met.

Excel If then formula: things to know

Though the last two parameters of the IF function are optional, your formula may produce unexpected results if you don't know the underlying logic.

If value_if_true is omitted

If the 2nd argument of your Excel IF formula is omitted (i.e. there are two consecutive commas after the logical test), you'll get zero (0) when the condition is met, which makes no sense in most cases. Here is an example of such a formula:

=IF(B2>80, , "Bad")

To return a blank cell instead, supply an empty string ("") for the second parameter, like this:

=IF(B2>80, "", "Bad")

The screenshot below demonstrates the difference: The behavior of the value_if_true argument.

If value_if_false is omitted

Omitting the 3rd parameter of IF will produce the following results when the logical test evaluates to FALSE.

If there is just a closing bracket after value_if_true, the IF function will return the logical value FALSE. Quite unexpected, isn't it? Here is an example of such a formula:

=IF(B2>80, "Good")

Typing a comma after the value_if_true argument will force Excel to return 0, which doesn't make much sense either:

=IF(B2>80, "Good",)

The most reasonable approach is using a zero-length string ("") to get a blank cell when the condition is not met:

=IF(B2>80, "Good", "") The behavior of the value_if_false argument.

Tip. To return a logical value when the specified condition is met or not met, supply TRUE for value_if_true and FALSE for value_if_false. For the results to be Boolean values that other Excel functions can recognize, don't enclose TRUE and FALSE in double quotes as this will turn them into normal text values.

Using IF function in Excel - formula examples

Now that you are familiar with the IF function's syntax, let's look at some formula examples and learn how to use If then statements in real-life scenarios.

Excel IF function with numbers

To build an IF statement for numbers, use logical operators such as:

  • Equal to (=)
  • Not equal to (<>)
  • Greater than (>)
  • Greater than or equal to (>=)
  • Less than (<)
  • Less than or equal to (<=)

Above, you have already seen an example of such a formula that checks if a number is greater than a given number.

And here's a formula that checks if a cell contains a negative number:

=IF(B2<0, "Invalid", "")

For negative numbers (which are less than 0), the formula returns "Invalid"; for zeros and positive numbers - a blank cell. A formula to check if a cell contains a negative number.

Excel IF function with text

Commonly, you write an IF statement for text values using either "equal to" or "not equal to" operator.

For example, the following formula checks the Delivery Status in B2 to determine whether an action is required or not:

=IF(B2="delivered", "No", "Yes")

Translated into plain English, the formula says: return "No" if B2 is equal to "delivered", "Yes" otherwise. Using the IF function with text.

Another way to achieve the same result is to use the "not equal to" operator and swap the value_if_true and value_if_false values:

=IF(C2<>"delivered", "Yes", "No")

Notes:

  • When using text values for IF's parameters, remember to always enclose them in double quotes.
  • Like most other Excel functions, IF is case-insensitive by default. In the above example, it does not differentiate between "delivered", "Delivered", and "DELIVERED".

Case-sensitive IF statement for text values

To treat uppercase and lowercase letters as different characters, use IF in combination with the case-sensitive EXACT function.

For example, to return "No" only when B2 contains "DELIVERED" (the uppercase), you'd use this formula:

=IF(EXACT(B2,"DELIVERED"), "No", "Yes") Case-sensitive IF statement for text values.

If cell contains partial text

In situation when you want to base the condition on partial match rather than exact match, an immediate solution that comes to mind is using wildcards in the logical test. However, this simple and obvious approach won't work. Many functions accept wildcards, but regrettably IF is not one of them.

A working solution is to use IF in combination with ISNUMBER and SEARCH (case-insensitive) or FIND (case-sensitive).

For example, in case "No" action is required both for "Delivered" and "Out for delivery" items, the following formula will work a treat:

=IF(ISNUMBER(SEARCH("deliv", B2)), "No", "Yes") IF cell contains partial text.

For more information, please see:

Excel IF statement with dates

At first sight, it may seem that IF formulas for dates are akin to IF statements for numeric and text values. Regrettably, it is not so. Unlike many other functions, IF does recognize dates in logical tests and interprets them as mere text strings. In other words, you cannot supply a date in the form of "1/1/2020" or ">1/1/2020". To make the IF function recognize a date, you need to wrap it in the DATEVALUE function.

For example, here's how you can check if a given date is greater than another date:

=IF(B2>DATEVALUE("7/18/2022"), "Coming soon", "Completed")

This formula evaluates the dates in column B and returns "Coming soon" if a game is scheduled for 18-Jul-2022 or later, "Completed" for a prior date. Excel IF statement with dates.

Of course, there is nothing that would prevent you from entering the target date in a predefined cell (say E2) and referring to that cell. Just remember to lock the cell address with the $ sign to make it an absolute reference. For instance:

=IF(B2>$E$2, "Coming soon", "Completed")

To compare a date with the current date, use the TODAY() function. For example:

=IF(B2>TODAY(), "Coming soon", "Completed")

Excel IF statement for blanks and non-blanks

If you are looking to somehow mark your data based on a certain cell(s) being empty or not empty, you can either:

  • Use the IF function together with ISBLANK, or
  • Use the logical expressions ="" (equal to blank) or <>"" (not equal to blank).

The table below explains the difference between these two approaches with formula examples.

  Logical test Description Formula Example
Blank cells =""

Evaluates to TRUE if a cell is visually empty, even if it contains a zero-length string.

Otherwise, evaluates to FALSE.

 =IF(A1="", 0, 1)

Returns 0 if A1 is visually blank. Otherwise returns 1.

If A1 contains an empty string (""), the formula returns 0.
ISBLANK()

Evaluates to TRUE is a cell contains absolutely nothing - no formula, no spaces, no empty strings.

Otherwise, evaluates to FALSE.

 =IF(ISBLANK(A1), 0, 1)

Returns 0 if A1 is absolutely empty, 1 otherwise.

If A1 contains an empty string (""), the formula returns 1.
Non-blank cells <>"" Evaluates to TRUE if a cell contains some data. Otherwise, evaluates to FALSE.

Cells with zero-length strings are considered blank.

 =IF(A1<>"", 1, 0)

Returns 1 if A1 is non-blank; 0 otherwise.

If A1 contains an empty string, the formula returns 0.
ISBLANK()=FALSE Evaluates to TRUE if a cell is not empty. Otherwise, evaluates to FALSE.

Cells with zero-length strings are considered non-blank.

 =IF(ISBLANK(A1)=FALSE, 0, 1)

Works the same as the above formula, but returns 1 if A1 contains an empty string.

And now, let's see blank and non-blank IF statements in action. Suppose you have a date in column B only if a game has already been played. To label the completed games, use one of these formulas:

=IF(B2="", "", "Completed")

=IF(ISBLANK(B2), "", "Completed")

=IF($B2<>"", "Completed", "")

=IF(ISBLANK($B2)=FALSE, "Completed", "")

In case the tested cells have no zero-length strings, all the formulas will return exactly the same results: IF statement for blank and non-blank cells.

Check if two cells are the same

To create a formula that checks if two cells match, compare the cells by using the equals sign (=) in the logical test of IF. For example:

=IF(B2=C2, "Same score", "") Check if two cells contain the same values.

To check if the two cells contain same text including the letter case, make your IF formula case-sensitive with the help of the EXACT function.

For instance, to compare the passwords in A2 and B2, and returns "Match" if the two strings are exactly the same, "Do not match" otherwise, the formula is:

=IF(EXACT(A2, B2), "Match", "Don't match") Case-sensitive IF formula to check if two cells match.

IF then formula to run another formula

In all of the previous examples, an Excel IF statement returned values. But it can also perform a certain calculation or execute another formula when a specific condition is met or not met. For this, embed another function or arithmetic expression in the value_if_true and/or value_if_false arguments.

For example, if B2 is greater than 80, we'll have it multiplied by 7%, otherwise by 3%:

=IF(B2>80, B2*7%, B2*3%) IF formula that runs another formula.

Multiple IF statements in Excel

In essence, there are two ways to write multiple IF statements in Excel:

  • Nesting several IF functions one into another
  • Using the AND or OR function in the logical test

Nested IF statement

Nested IF functions let you place multiple IF statements in the same cell, i.e. test multiple conditions within one formula and return different values depending on the results of those tests.

Assume your goal is to assign different bonuses based on the score:

  • Over 90 - 10%
  • 90 to 81 - 7%
  • 80 to 70 - 5%
  • Less than 70 - 3%

To accomplish the task, you write 3 separate IF functions and nest them one into another like this:

=IF(B2>90, 10%, IF(B2>=81, 7%, IF(B2>=70, 5%, 3%))) Nested IF statement.

For more formula examples, please see:

Excel IF statement with multiple conditions

To evaluate several conditions with the AND or OR logic, embed the corresponding function in the logical test:

For example, to return "Pass" if both scores in B2 and C2 are higher than 80, the formula is:

=IF(AND(B2>80, C2>80), "Pass", "Fail")

To get "Pass" if either score is higher than 80, the formula is:

=IF(OR(B2>80, C2>80), "Pass", "Fail") Excel IF statement with multiple conditions.

For full details, please visit:

If error in Excel

Starting from Excel 2007, we have a special function, named IFERROR, to check formulas for errors. In Excel 2013 and higher, there is also the IFNA function to handle #N/A errors.

And still, there may be some circumstances when using the IF function together with ISERROR or ISNA is a better solution. Basically, IF ISERROR is the formula to use when you want to return something if error and something else if no error. The IFERROR function is unable to do that as it always returns the result of the main formula if it isn't an error.

For example, to compare each score in column B against the top 3 scores in E2:E4, and return "Yes" if a match is found, "No" otherwise, you enter this formula in C2, and then copy it down through C7:

=IF(ISERROR(MATCH(B2, $E$2:$E$4, 0)), "No", "Yes" ) If error formula in Excel.

For more information, please see IF ISERROR formula in Excel.

Hopefully, our examples have helped you get a grasp of the Excel IF basics. I thank you for reading and hope to see you on our blog next week!

Practice workbook

Excel IF statement - formula examples (.xlsx file)

Table of contents

4804 comments

  1. cool site. Thanks for showing us.

  2. I have got a range of TEXT acronyms in a separate sheet. I am using the following formula to assign a value to rows when they have a corresponding value in a column of the separate sheet.

    =IF(COUNTIFS('sheet1'!B:B;"*"&B2&"*")>0;"category1";IF(COUNTIFS('sheet1'!A:A;"*"&B2&"*")>0;"category2";IF(COUNTIFS('sheet1'!C:C;"*"&B2&"*")>0;"category3";"category4")))

    The formula works most of the times except when a cell contains but a value of one of the category even if not pertaining to it.

    To better explain myself: I have got a value which is "AU" which pertains to category4, but the results for it is category1 because, the latter contains a a value that is "JAU".

    How can I made the formula to include all the text, thus making AU displayed as a category4?
    Thank you in advance.

    • Hello!
      It is not clear from your explanation whether cell B2 and column Sheet1!B:B must match exactly, or B2 must be contained within any value in the column.
      Perhaps instead of “*”&B2&”*” in the formula, you need to write B2. Then the error you described will not be.

      • Thank you!

        Cell B2 has a text value to be checked if present in Sheet1!B:B. Hence, B2 must be contained within any value in the column.

        If I use B2 instead of “*”&B2&”*” the result for every column is category4. Is that because the value in B2 is a TEXT?

        • Hi,
          Again, you didn't say - do you want an exact match of values or a partial match? Your first formula calculated overlapping values. Give an example of the raw values you are comparing. Check for extra spaces in your values.
          Without seeing your data it is difficult to give you any advice. Please provide me with an example of the source data and the expected result.

          • Thank you Alexander,
            I want the exact match of values.

            I have got a column containing codes such as:
            Codes:
            AF
            BR
            BW
            AU
            JAU

            In another sheet I have got 3 different columns which orders the above mentioned codes by categories:

            Category 1 Category 2 Category 3
            AF BR JAU
            BW

            Hovewer, there are some codes which are not included in the categories.
            Such as AU.

            The formula I created checks if some cells in the categories list contains the values of the codes column.

            However this does consider also consider partial values inside the cells i.e. "AU" is categorized as Category 3 - as in category 3 there is a value "JAU".
            How do I rewrite the formula to make it take into account the whole value of the cell and this making AU (which does not belong to any of the three category list) be categorized as a 4 category (which is "not pertaining to any category")

            Thank you in advance

            • Hello!
              If you need an exact match between values, then you need to use the formula that I already recommended to you.
              If the AF code does not match the AF category, then these values have extra spaces or non-printable characters. Compare these cells using the "=" operator to check.

  3. Really good site,thank so much for your effort in writing the posts.

  4. Good morning, I am trying to make it where if I type N in colum J:J then columns K:K, L:L, M:M, N:N also populate N as well, can anyone help with this formula.

  5. What is a equation blank -9 equals one

  6. Hello, is it possible to have a formula return a date? I want Excel to return a date if a column says completed. Thanks!

  7. Hii.
    I want to display a list of names of students who scored a 0 in a test.
    The problem I'm experiencing is of duplicacy.
    Please help.

  8. Hi Guys,
    Can you help me to solve this below mentioned if function in excel?

    =if(E1:E5="APPROVED", "APPROVED", "NOT APPROVED")

    • Hi,
      Anyone can help me to solve this below mentioned if function in excel?

      =if(E1:E5="APPROVED", "APPROVED", "NOT APPROVED")

      In my document sheet,
      Column E,
      Cell 1 to Cell 5 will be either " APPROVED" or "REJECTED" or "NOT APPROVED"
      In cell 6 I need to use the above function. Text of E1 to E5 are 'APPROVED" then the cell 6 will be shown as "APPROVED" or "NOT APPROVED".

      • Hello!
        Please use the following formula/the formula below to solve your task:

        =IF(SUM(--(E1:E5="APPROVED"))=5,"APPROVED","NOT APPROVED")

        I hope this will help

        • Hi Alexander,
          I have tried but it's not working. Could you please explain to me the formula?

          =IF(SUM(--(E1:E5="APPROVED"))=5,"APPROVED","NOT APPROVED")
          about this "--" also =5

  9. Hello

    I'm trying to create an if formula so that if I type into a cell any number in the adjacent cell it will return there name

    EG
    Number Students Name
    1 Joe Bloggs

  10. =IF(Sheet2!B3:B15="E1","8","-")
    This is Selvakumaran, for the above given formula i have using this to create a titme table for my teachers, but I couldn't get what i have expect, can u please help me?
    I have entered E1 in one of a cell in a range and I need result as "E1" in another cell but I couldn't get it.

    • Hi,
      The IF function does not work with data ranges. Therefore, the expression

      IF(Sheet2!B3:B15= ......

      is incorrect.
      I cannot give more detailed advice, since you did not explain the problem in detail.

  11. I am having trouble with a formula hope you can help, I am trying to create a formula to put text in a cell.
    I have a cell that reference with a set target which is a percentage 85% and then and
    I want it to say if Col L7 which is a percentage value say 75%, is greater then a desire target which is in col K7 (85%) put YES if it is 85% or over put put no in NO if it is not

    IF L7 is >=(K7)85% "YES" but if is under <Less than 85% say (K7) "NO"

  12. Hi
    I made this below chart and I want a indicator in AVAILABLE Cell where I need red mark will show if Qty will be 5 Pcs or less than 5 Pcs. Please help me to get this problem solved. Here in AVAILABLE Cell I put the formula like this =IF([@AVAILABLE]="0","-1",[@STOCK]-[@[SALES QTY]])

    STOCK SALES QTY AVAILABLE
    20 Pcs 11 Pcs 09 Pcs ▲
    10 Pcs 09 Pcs 01 Pcs ▲
    05 Pcs 05 Pcs - ▼
    15 Pcs 04 Pcs 11 Pcs ▲
    09 Pcs 04 Pcs 05 Pcs ▲
    10 Pcs 05 Pcs 05 Pcs ▲

    I tried many ways changing the number inside the fomula but failed to correct this.
    Thanks
    Sazedul Munna

  13. Hello, I'm hoping you can help.
    I'm trying to create a formula for the following
    Have multiple Dept (example 3226.7191 33.24.71, etc in Column L) and I have cost associated to each line items in Column R.
    I want to create a formula which summaries the charges for each Dept.
    For example - the forumla would look down column L and if Dept=3226.7191 it would then look at column R and cross-reference all of the charges that appear in column R with all the time that Dept 3226.7191 appears and provides a summary of those charges

  14. Hi
    How can i use if condition with range ( have 3 columns and need to say if the number in range A2:c5 more than 10 so its good

  15. I'm trying to replace words.
    Example:
    =IF(A1="XXX",REPLACE(A1,"G2"))

    If the wording in A1=XXX, I want to replace the words in A1 with the words on G2

    This doesn't return anything, what am I missing?

    Thank you, Swann

  16. Hi

    I need a formula in excel that ensures that cell can only be 9 characters long. And the following must show if the entry does not meet the requirements: a stop symbol and an error message that says: the text lenght must be 9 characters?

    Hope you can help

  17. I have made a formula

    =+DATEDIF($H$2,G4,"Y")&" years ,"&DATEDIF($H$2,G4,"md")& " Months and "&DATEDIF($H$2,G4,"yd")&" Days"

    Now i want that whenever the years are 0 or months are 0 only days should appear

    I can do that with IF statement that
    IF(DATEDIF($H$2,G4,"Y")&" years ,"=0,DATEDIF($H$2,G4,"md")& " Months and "&DATEDIF($H$2,G4,"yd")&" Days",DATEDIF($H$2,G4,"Y")&" years ,"&DATEDIF($H$2,G4,"md")& " Months and "&DATEDIF($H$2,G4,"yd")&" Days")

    as can be seen it is very lengthy
    Is there a better way?

  18. I have made a formula

    =+DATEDIF($H$2,G4,"Y")&" years ,"&DATEDIF($H$2,G4,"md")& " Months and "&DATEDIF($H$2,G4,"yd")&" Days"

    Now i want that whenever the result is =0,"Formula","")

    Basically I want the result of the "Formula" when it is true in the value_if_true part else blank but don't want to retype the "Formula" again every time in the value_if_true part in the IF formula

    • Hello!
      Try the following formula:

      =IF($H$2<>G4,DATEDIF($H$2,G4,"Y")&" years ,"&DATEDIF($H$2,G4,"md")& " Months and "&DATEDIF($H$2,G4,"yd")&" Days","")

      I hope it’ll be helpful.

  19. Hi I need help,
    "The idea is to use the logical test to determine whether the current ID is the same as the previous ID. If so, use the old summation plus the current value as the new summation. If not, use the current value as the new summation."
    I have ID numbers from A2:A693 and need to sum B2:B693 but the ID numbers go up to 148
    thank you

    • Hello!
      I’m sorry but your task is not entirely clear to me.
      Please describe your problem in more detail. Include an example of the source data and the result you want to get. It’ll help me understand your request better and find a solution for you.

  20. Hi All,

    If I have 4 different ranges, and want to make a formula in excel. Can you please help on this?
    1- Less or equal to 65% is Bad
    2- Between 65% and 110% is Good
    3- Between 111% and 200% is Awesome
    4- More than 200% is Maverick

    Thank you for your support

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