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. Hello,

    Looking for an if statement which may not exist. At work we run an SQL that reports locations of specific items. The location field is always xxx-xxx-xx. For example 224-111-03 would be aisle 224, 111th spot, 3rd shelf. I am trying to figure out if I can write an if statement where if the value is between 200-000-00 and 299-999-99, then 1. Or really anyway to manipulate the "224-111-03" so I can work with the locations.

    Thanks

    • Hello Daniel,

      You can use both variants. Please specify the one you prefer and we will help you with the formula.

  2. hi,

    i have this check list with a checkbox, and i need to know how i can make the question status cell to display a text(done, pending) while changing the cell color (red to green),when i select one of the checkbox answer.

    ex. do you have a list of traces on PCB? []yes []no []n/a [question status]

  3. HOW TO USE ROUND OFF COMMENT WITH SUM

  4. i trying to put a formula which searches a specific word from the excell cell string and if ts there then then type "True" or false accordingly.

    • please help me out over this

  5. Hi, I am creating a spreadsheet to analyse UK horse racing. There are 60 courses under the "Course List" column. In the "Course" column I have listed the meetings taking place each day for the next 12 months, 1175 in total. I am using the following formula in the "Total Meetings" column to extract the number of meetings for each racecourse during the next 12 months
    Total Meetings:
    =COUNTIF($B$2:$B1176,$D2)

    I would now like to add another column which shows the number of meetings remaining after todays races have completed. e.g. if there are 25 meetings in total for a race course, each time a meeting is completed reduce the number of meetings remaining by 1 and display in "Remaining" column next to each course in the "Course List"

    RACE DATE COURSE Course List Total Meetings Remaining
    1-Feb-15 MUSSELBURGH AINTREE 21
    MUSSELBURGH CHELMSFORD CITY 18
    2-Feb-15 PUNCHESTOWN LINGFIELD PARK 54
    WOLVERHAMPTON SOUTHWELL 60
    KEMPTON PARK CHELMSFORD CITY 55
    ASCOT AYR 12
    BANGOR-ON-DEE 22
    MUSSELBURGH 7

    Any suggestions please?

    Thanks

  6. hi,

    I need a help in IF formula.
    I have a sheet column AA8 TO AA132 with different due dates, AB column has status as ND,F,WP. I want to change the ND to blank if due date is today.

    thanks

    • hi,

      could you please help me on this formula
      =IF(AA8=TODAY(), IF(AA8= "ND", ""))
      if ND with due date works fine, but any other words LIKE F, WP,CO ETC RESULT SHOWS FALSE

      THANKS
      VJ

      • Hello Vijay,

        It is difficult to recommend you anything without seeing your data. If you can post your sample workbooks and the result you want to achieve on our forum, our support team will try to help.

        • I want to highlight one cell of any column When we move the cursor anywhere in the excel sheet. when we will move the cursor up & down then highlight position also move in column only.

          ex-
          let we choose B column and we work in A,C,D column.
          now if we will work in A1 or C1 or D1 cell then B1 cell should be highlight.
          if we will work in A3 or C3 or D3 column then D3 should be highlight.

          plz give the solution.

  7. Hi,

    I was wondering if you could help me. I am trying to format a worksheet where if there is something (in my case columns H, J, L, and N all contain dates) in column H and no value in column I for that same row, the row text turns a different color. Then the same for J to K, L to M, and N to O. Is there an easy way to do this? Maybe I am overthinking? If it's not possible to change the row text color, then just the relative column with the date (H, J, L, N). Thanks!

    • I am sad that this is not something that can be done. It would make things so much easier.

      • Hi Gracie,

        In fact, you can do this by creating Excel conditional formatting rules. For example, if you want to highlight a row that has a date in column H but no value in column I in the same row, you use this formula:

        =AND($H2<>"", $I2="")

        Where row 2 is your first row with data (not including the column headers).

        Please check out the following tutorial for more details:
        How to change the row color based on a cell's value in Excel

        • This is terrific! I cannot even put into words how helpful this is. Thank you so much!!!!

  8. Hi,

    I am doing a project and I need to use the IF function in cell B14 to see if the average in B10 is > the value of each individual average in cells C10,D10,E10, and F10. I tried =IF(B10>C10:F10,"Yes!","No") and =IF(B10>C10,D10,E10,F10,"Yes!","No") both aren't working.

    • Never mind. I just got it.

  9. I have a table with different tasks and Price of that task. I want to be able to put in a task code and get have a cell read "direct" or "indirect". Would if function work best?

  10. How do you use an If function to count how many characters there are in a cell.
    The question is to ask if there are less than four characters in a certain cell?

    • Hi Kimberly,

      You can use the LEN function to count the number of characters in a certain cell, and then you can embed it in the IF function. For example:
      =IF(LEN(A1)<4, "good", "bad")

  11. I'm working with a database the puts in new orders at the end of the spread sheet. What I'm trying to do is only bring the "new" entries into another sheet. I've made an identifer of using "1" for new and "0" for old. How would I only display the "1" entries on the workbook? Any help would be greatly apperciated.

  12. I need a formula that will allow me to transfer dates from one page to another.
    The first page will be in date format but I need it to correlate on the second page in dated columns as a single X or check-mark.

    I would appreciate your assistance.

    Thank you,

  13. Hello, i am trying to evaluate between five different columns, in which one of the four columns has a date and two or three of the following columns may or may not have a value. I have tried Isblank but don't get the results. eg: subtract b-a, if b blank then use c-a, if b and c blank then d-a, if b,c,e blank then e-a.

    • Hi Jack,

      Try this one:

      =IF(AND(B2="", C2="", D2=""), E2-A2, IF(AND(B2="", C2=""), D2-A2, IF(B2="", C2-A2, B2-A2)))

    • Hey Svetlana

      I am dealing with 10000 calls and every call has a time (like 13:56:40)
      but I want to count only calls from 8:00:00-17:00:00

      I am using =IF(AND(B433>=08:00:00, B433=08:00:00, B433<=17:00:00), "1", "0")

      13:36:06 1

      18:56:07 0

      14:32:26 1

      I want it like this but I am not sure what is the mistake with my formula

  14. Hi,
    I've beentrying to fix this sheet i'm working on for a day now. i hope you can help me. what i'm trying to do is if my team will put their name choosing from a drop down list from A1, it should automatically put their employee ID in B2.

    please help...

    Thanks..

    • Hi Mark,

      Assume that you have master base data where you have all the info about emp name and ID. So from there you can create a employee list by the data validation rule and then put it in A1..then at B1 put this vlookup

      formula = Vlookup(A1,Base data range,Column index no,0)...

      So when you will put their name choosing from a drop down list from A1, it should automatically put their employee ID in B2.

  15. Hi,

    Is it possible to get an if result that shows, in a single result, text and a math result?

    =IF(D20<100%,"Dropout to be recovered"(SUM(D18-D19)),"Over target")

    After "Dropout to be recovered" I would like to show the amount to be recovered.

    Thanks.

    • Hi Adolfo,

      Sure, just use the concatenation operator (&) - "Dropout to be recovered "&SUM()

      If you want the text and number to be separated with a space, type a space before the closing quote, like in the example above.

  16. Hi Svetlana, do you have a formula for words of which the column 3 is the final identifier from the given information from columns 1 and 2:
    Column 1 Column 2 Column 3
    Common Stock Common Stock = Common Stock
    Preferred Stock Preferred Stock = Preferred Stock
    Rights Common Stock = Common Stock
    Rights Rights = Rights
    Preferred Stocks Rights = Rights

  17. I'm need to get the following outcomes for multiple scenerios. Here's and example:

    If E2=1 then G2="NIC"
    If E2=2 then G2="CCM"
    If E2=3 then G2="HP/DP"

    I want to copy this formula throught a farily large spreadsheet.

    • never mind I figured it out:

      =IF(B1=1,"NIC",IF(B1=2,"CCM",IF(B1=3,"HP/DP")))

  18. I tried this: but it doesn't work: =IF(ISNUMBER(SEARCH("Brigitte",'FY15 Germany & Benelux Projects'!K2:O2)),"X","")

  19. Regarding Example 3. "IF formula for text values with partial match."
    I am looking to get the same result but for text values in a RANGE of cells (not just one cell) with partial match.
    So if in a range of cells, containing several names in each cell, the name "Brigitte" appears, than I want excel to return an X, if not than I want nothing returned.
    I have been looking an dlooking and haven't found the solution so far.
    Thanks a lot in advance for your help.

    • I tried this: but it doesn't work: =IF(ISNUMBER(SEARCH("Brigitte",'FY15 Germany & Benelux Projects'!K2:O2)),"X","")

  20. i have a table basically column A date, column B cash, column c Check. I need to look at column B & C in same row and sum all based on whether column A's year text only, like 2015.so it would give me a total of all payouts in 2015 only. the date column is formatted 1-jul-2015 with multiple years being listed.

    date cash check
    1-jul-2015 50.00 0
    1/jan-2014 0 100
    1-feb-2105 0 75

    total for 2015 should be 125.00

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