Goal: Find the numeric position of a specific character.
FIND: Exact Match (Case-Sensitive).
SEARCH: Flexible Match (Case-Insensitive).
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💻 Formula Structure
=FIND(find_text, within_text, [start])
- 1. Find Text: What to look for (e.g. "d").
- 2. Within: The source string.
- Rule: Case-Sensitive ("D" ≠ "d").
=SEARCH(find_text, within_text, [start])
- 1. Find Text: What to look for.
- Rule: Case-Insensitive ("D" = "d").
- Bonus: Supports wildcards (*, ?).
-- Select a function...
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⚠️ Common Pitfalls
🚫 #VALUE! Error
If the text is not found (or if FIND case doesn't match), Excel returns a #VALUE! error. Wrap in IFERROR to handle this gracefully.
1️⃣ First Match Only
These functions stop at the first match they find. To find the second match, use the optional [start_num] argument to skip the first one.