
To do that, we will use the below simple formula: =B2=C2 With the ‘Equals to’ (=), you can compare cells in two columns for a match and get the result as either true or false.įor example, we will compare two columns (Bill Due and Bill Paid in the screenshot below) to see if they match. The easiest way to compare two columns’ data row by row for finding the match is using the comparison operator. There are different types of formulas you can use to compare two columns row by row – using a simple comparison operator, IF function, and EXACT function. It will only compare values in the same row, not the entire dataset. The simplest way to compare two columns in Excel is a simple row-by-row, line-by-line comparison. This method checks whether the value in one column matches the value in another column in the same row. Comparing Two Columns Row by Row for Matches or Differences In this article, we will discuss different methods to compare columns in Excel for matches and differences.

You can use logical operators – VLOOKUP, MATCH, AND, INDEX, IF, COUNTIF, ISERROR, IFERROR – or Conditional Formatting rules to compare and match data. Manually comparing the data from two columns can be a time-consuming and exhausting task, so you can use various Excel formulas to match columns.Įxcel has several methods and functions for comparing columns and finding matching and mismatching data. Comparing columns is very useful for organizing and analyzing data.

When you’re working with data in Excel, you may need to compare columns to find similarities and differences between data.
