INDEX MATCH in Excel
INDEX MATCH is two formulas working together to do what VLOOKUP does, without VLOOKUP's biggest limitation: VLOOKUP can only look to the right of its search column. MATCH finds the position of a value in a range; INDEX then returns the value at that position from any other range — left, right, same table or a different one entirely.
Worked example
=INDEX(B2:B10, MATCH("Pastry", A2:A10, 0))The value in column B on the same row where column A equals "Pastry"
MATCH finds the row number; INDEX returns the value at that row from the column you choose.
Why INDEX MATCH beats VLOOKUP for most real work
VLOOKUP needs the lookup column to be the leftmost column in its table — INDEX MATCH doesn't care which side the data you're returning sits on.
VLOOKUP breaks if someone inserts a column inside the table (the hard-coded column number shifts); INDEX MATCH references each range separately, so it's far less fragile.
The modern alternative: XLOOKUP
If you have a recent version of Excel, XLOOKUP does everything INDEX MATCH does in one formula instead of two, plus built-in handling for "not found" results. INDEX MATCH is still worth knowing — it works in every Excel version and is a common interview topic.
Practice this for real
Try the "INDEX & MATCH" exercises
Type the formula into a real spreadsheet and get instant feedback.