Google Sheets function
MATCH function in Google Sheets
MATCH in Google Sheets returns the relative position of a search key within a one-dimensional range. Use exact match for unsorted labels or identifiers, or an approximate search type for sorted numeric ranges. MATCH often supplies a row or column position to INDEX.
Source: Google Docs Editors HelpLast verified Nov 5, 2026
Syntax
=MATCH(search_key, range, [search_type])Arguments
| Argument | Required | What it means |
|---|---|---|
search_key | Yes | The value to find. |
range | Yes | The single row or column to search. |
search_type | No | The match method: 1 for ascending, 0 for exact, or -1 for descending. |
Examples
Find a product position
| A | B | C | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Product | Search | |
| 2 | Notebook | Pen | |
| 3 | Pen | ||
| 4 | Folder |
=MATCH(C2,A2:A4,0)Result: 2
Pen is the second value within A2:A4, so MATCH returns 2.
Common mistakes
Using a two-dimensional table as the search range.
Give MATCH a single row or a single column.
Omitting search_type for an unsorted exact lookup.
Use 0 when the search key must match exactly.