Cellwise

Text function

Excel SEARCH function

SEARCH returns the position where one piece of text first appears in another. It ignores upper and lower case and supports wildcards. It is the go-to way to check whether a cell contains a word.

fx=SEARCH(find_text, within_text, [start_num])

Arguments

find_text
The text to look for. You can use ? for one character and * for any run.
within_text
The text or cell to search in.
start_num
Which character to start searching from. Leave it out to start at 1.

SEARCH examples

Every result below was calculated live from this sample sheet.

ABC
1ProductCategoryNotes
2Wireless Mouse M220AccessoriesCustomer says URGENT replacement
3Laptop Stand ProFurnitureship with next order
4USB-C Charger 65WPowerUrgent: back-ordered
  1. fx=SEARCH("mouse",A2)

    Result: 10

    SEARCH ignores case, so "mouse" matches "Mouse" at position 10.

  2. fx=ISNUMBER(SEARCH("urgent",C4))

    Result: TRUE

    Returns TRUE because the note contains "Urgent".

  3. fx=IF(ISNUMBER(SEARCH("urgent",C3)),"Rush","Normal")

    Result: Normal

    No "urgent" in the note, so the order is "Normal".

  4. fx=MID(A4,SEARCH(" ",A4)+1,7)

    Result: Charger

    SEARCH finds the first space, and MID takes the next word: "Charger".

How to use SEARCH

  1. Type =SEARCH( and the text to find, in quotes.
  2. Add a comma and select the cell to search.
  3. Close the bracket to get the position.
  4. Wrap it in ISNUMBER for a TRUE/FALSE "contains" test.

Common SEARCH mistakes

Treating #VALUE! as zero

When nothing is found SEARCH returns #VALUE!. ISNUMBER(SEARCH(...)) turns that into a clean FALSE.

Searching for a real * or ?

Those are wildcards. Put a tilde before them, like "~?", to search for the actual character.

Matching inside other words

SEARCH("art",A2) also matches "Smart" and "party". Add spaces around the word if needed.

SEARCH FAQ

How do I check if a cell contains a word in Excel?

Use =ISNUMBER(SEARCH("word",A2)). It returns TRUE if the word appears anywhere, ignoring case.

Is SEARCH case sensitive in Excel?

No. SEARCH ignores case. Use FIND when case matters.

How do I search for multiple words in a cell?

Combine tests with OR: =OR(ISNUMBER(SEARCH("red",A2)),ISNUMBER(SEARCH("blue",A2))).

Guides that use SEARCH

Related functions

Updated 2026-10-31