Excel conditional format with wildcard. Is a wildcard possible in conditional formatting? .

Excel conditional format with wildcard Below is an example of one day from a table I have produced. Choose the Rule Type: Use a formula to determine which cells to format. For Condition1>Select 'Formula Is' and enter the formulas 4. Discover how to use wildcards in Excel to find and analyze data with partial information. While Excel doesn't support full regex functionality, you can use wildcards with creative formula structuring (functions like SEARCH(), TEXT(), and ISNUMBER()). Any help is appreciated. I want a create a conditional formatting changing cell color if the cell contain QA (wldcard) "QA*". Jul 8, 2019 · Custom date and time formats for the Format function (Access custom web app) Learn how to control how a date or time is displayed by creating a custom formatting. It highlights the cells, applies font formatting, creates in-cell bar charts, increases or decreases icons, highlights duplicate values, highlights one cell based on the value in the other cell, top 10 and bottom 10 values, creates Jun 23, 2024 · How to Perform Conditional Formatting Based On Another Cell in Excel is done by using the AND, OR, SEARCH functions, and AVERAGE function. VLOOKUP supports approximate and exact matching and wildcards (* ?) for partial matches. So, for example, “Ap*” will match “Apple“, “Application Sep 27, 2021 · The three characters are used in some of the basic excel formulas, e. 3 days ago · Fundamental Wildcard Usage in Excel Wildcards are predominantly used within Excel’s functions and features such as: Filters SEARCH, FIND functions COUNTIF, COUNTIFS SUMIF, SUMIFS VLOOKUP, HLOOKUP, INDEX-MATCH Conditional Formatting Data Validation Below, we examine key contexts and how wildcards integrate into them. Asterisk (*) The asterisk character means any number of characters in the world of a wildcard search. What Is Conditional Formatting In Excel? Conditional Formatting is a dynamic process of formatting the cell or range of cells based on the conditions of the users. Feb 6, 2019 · In my last post, I demonstrated applying conditional formats when text starts with a given value. For example, I have data in 4 columns. xlsx‎ (12. Get expert tips, ask questions, and share your love for all things Excel. Nov 27, 2024 · In this tutorial, we will show advanced conditional formatting using formula-based rules, which gives you far greater flexibility than standard built-in options. Or click Conditional Formatting > New Rule Click Format only cells that contain. SEARCH supports wildcards, and is not case-sensitive. This technique allows you to highlight cells containing I would like to use a conditional formatting rule in an excel file that would color any box with a question mark in it red. From menu Format>Conditional Formatting> 3. I am trying to look in cell b2 and if the letter "a" appears anywhere in it AND either C2 or D2 are filled Conditional Format in Excel wildcard use Microsoft Preview 2 hours ago On the Home tab of the ribbon, click Conditional Formatting > Highlight Cells Rules > Text That Contains Enter CO2. The IF function doesn't support wildcards directly, so we can't use IF by itself. A wildcard is a special character that lets you perform "fuzzy" matching on text in your Excel formulas. This article will delve into the art of conditional formatting, specifically focusing on the technique of word detection, and how 3. Jul 6, 2024 · We have discussed 5 methods to use the wildcard in IF statement in Excel. This technique allows for flexible data manipulation, enabling users to make informed decisions based on complex criteria and patterns. In this guide, we're going to show you how to use Excel Wildcard characters for setting up formula criteria. This powerful duo allows users to dynamically highlight and organize data based on patterns and criteria that are not strictly defined by exact matches. It seems that Excel is using a question mark as a wild card and will turn A vibrant community of Excel enthusiasts. Jun 25, 2024 · In this article, you will get the easiest ways to do conditional formatting for multiple conditions in Excel. Aug 4, 2021 · Hello, I am trying to use this formula in conditional formatting: =$J3="returned" But I need the word to be a wildcard as the cell will contain other text. Wildcards are special characters that allow you to perform “fuzzy” matching on text in your formulas. 27% (17/22) 74. Oct 25, 2006 · Greetings, I have a column with values and I change the fill using a set of conditional formatting rules with the criteria below (well as much as I can remember from work, so these are not the exact values but the same principle) =COUNTIF(A1:A100, "*AA*") =COUNTIF(A1:A100, "*AB*") Jan 18, 2015 · Conditional formatting With Formula Is, =SEARCH(“TEXT”,A1) Where A1 is the cell of interest. SEARCH Function The Excel SEARCH function returns the location of one text string inside another. Conditional Formatting Based On Text With Wildcard - Can I choose to highlight rows based on a cell in that - Free Excel Help Please note that the cell reference A1 mentioned in the formula is the active cell in the selection. , SEARCH, VLOOKUP, FIND AND REPLACE, COUNTIF, COUNTIFS CONDITIONAL FORMATTING, among others. We have detailed methods on highlighting rows according to text or numbers, Feb 15, 2022 · This tutorial explains how to apply conditional formatting to cells that contain specific text in Excel, including an example. So… May 9, 2008 · Conditional Formatting with Wildcards Morning everyone, I'm looking for a little help with writing a formula within Conditional Formatting. From the first dropdown, select Specific Text. 09% (2/2) 100% (1/1) 87. Jun 16, 2024 · In this article, we used Text that Contains, Equal to, New Rule types, and Custom Rule to achieve Conditional Formatting text color in Excel. SEARCH returns the position of find_text inside within_text as a number. The image below shows you where to locate the conditional formatting tool. Apr 22, 2020 · Re: Conditional formatting duplicates with and without wildcard asterix Sorry. Suppose you have a list of product codes in cells D2:D6, each meant to be exactly five characters long (like CODE1). Jan 17, 2011 · Hello, I could not figure out a "like" function or wildcard (*) to use in conditional formatting in Excel. From the second dropdown, select containing (this is Jun 10, 2025 · Learn how to use Excel conditional formatting based on another cell to create dynamic, data-driven visualizations for financial analysis and decision-making. This can be done by selecting the entire row and creating a rule in the Conditional Formatting menu. Select a format. Mar 5, 2019 · Other answers reminded us of use of wildcard characters (*, ?, ~) in Excel formulas. An asterisk (*) matches zero or more characters. Jun 11, 2021 · Conditional formatting with wildcard highlight row Hi guys, How do I specify a wildcard whereby if there is mention of the word: close (or closed) in column H, highlight the whole row where close or closed is mentioned, the row should be highlighted in green thanks, R. You can apply conditional formatting to a range of cells (either a selection or a named range), an Excel table, and in Excel for Windows You can use wildcard characters to match multiple expressions. formula: =F5 Guide to Wildcard In Excel. Wildcards can be used in conditional formatting rules to highlight specific patterns in data. Conditional formatting is a powerful feature in Excel that allows users to automatically format cells based on specific criteria. Jan 11, 2022 · But as @Anonymous suggested the wildcard filter are not available directly in power query, maybe we can use it with dax if you can share your pbix or data in excel for me to try. In this video, you'll learn how to efficiently search for specific keywords in Excel using Conditional Formatting and wildcard characters. 5% Mar 15, 2011 · Conditional formatting lets you format cells in an Excel spreadsheet based on the cells' content. Thanks again, though. You will learn what wildcards are, how to use them effectively in various Excel functions, best practices, and troubleshooting tips to enhance your productivity. In this section, we’ll cover the available wildcards, for example, wildcard usage and functions that support wildcards. Make sure the A1 is not locked (like $A$1). Wildcard characters can be used with the "Text contains" or "Text does not contain" fields while formatting. Jun 8, 2006 · Conditional formatting and non-wildcard asterisks gli Oct 2, 2019 asterisks cell cells conditional conditions Aug 24, 2013 · I know this will take two separate statements but I am not sure how to write it with a wild card to allow for the variations. These can also be used in the Conditional Formatting rules that use the "Only format cells that contain specific text" criteria. I thought of using conditional formatting with a formula… How can I conditionally format a row based on the value of one cell within that row?Thanks!  Feb 28, 2023 · Learn About the Three Different Excel Wildcard Characters and the Different Ways to Use Them. In other words, if the cell value contains the text "my specific text", anywhere in the cell value, I want to pick this up and use the conditional format. Feb 21, 2020 · Re: Conditional Formatting issue due to wildcard * If that takes care of your original question, please select Thread Tools from the menu link above and mark this thread as SOLVED. Use the following formula in the field: Format values where this formula is true. These are text cells with names and each name will have letters in parenthesis after … Use wildcard characters as comparison criteria for text filters and when you're searching and replacing content. Jul 15, 2021 · Conditional formatting - Highlight cells rules - Text that contains, then enter ~* in the box and choose your formatting. Jun 22, 2007 · Can I choose to highlight rows based on a cell in that row containing specific text. However, if you want more flexibility, you can use your own formula, as explained in this article. I'm trying to do conditional formatting for a group of cells. I can do it for a specific statement, e. Jun 11, 2024 · This article will illustrate the different 9 ways for conditional formatting partial text match in Excel effectively. For example, this formula: Aug 27, 2009 · Hi all, Is it possible to use conditional formatting on a range of cells for multiple text using the wildcard on one rule? Example, range D5:AH14, I want By default, it is case sensitive, but you can change this setting. "ask John?", "?same as before") there is a simple way to automatically highlight them. Its wildcard capabilities, when combined with conditional formatting, can transform the way data is visualized and interpreted. Other than that, it would be used the same way you would a wildcard, and can be used as follows when setting Conditional Formatting: =ISLIKE(A1, "LS*") Will return TRUE for LS and LST but FALSE for Lst. 1 KB, 8 views) Download Thanks, R. Active cell will have a white background even after selection 2. Customizing conditional formatting rules for an entire row allows for even greater flexibility in highlighting data. Read more Function I want to use a wildcard in order to format certain cells - here's what I am doing: File names get outputted into a sheet - these file names look like FileName = String1_numberstring_String2. Something like If value is EU and some wild card string then, format. Microsoft documents the Duplicate Values mode of conditional formatting in the following articles: Find and remove duplicates Filter for unique values or remove duplicate values Apr 13, 2023 · Learn how to quickly highlight entire rows based on a cell value in Excel: using one or several colors, if cell starts with specific text, based on several conditions, and more. g. The conditional function like COUNTIF,AND,OR, SEARCH are used here. Jul 30, 2019 · Re: Conditional formatting with wildcards As Richard pointed out, how a cell displays is not necessarily what it contains. Elevate your spreadsheet skills with us! Aug 19, 2015 · You can achieve your desired results by putting a tilde, ~ in front of the asterisk as an , if you put the conditional formatting rules in the order listed below. Hit OK Jul 6, 2024 · Method 4 – Use COUNT and SEARCH Functions to Highlight Cells That Contain Text from a List Steps: Select the dataset (B5:B14). But what if you just want to know if your text contains that value (beginning, middle, end, wherever)? We can use that same indexOf function provided by List Formatting. Jun 12, 2020 · Note: Excel contains many built-in rules for highlighting values with conditional formatting, including a rule to highlight cells that end with specific text. Wildcard characters are all about searching a text with a partial match. To use it, you create rules that determine the format of cells based on their values, such as the following monthly temperature data with cell colors tied to cell values. Download the workbook. Use wildcard characters as comparison criteria for text filters and when you're searching and replacing content. Excel has 3 wildcards. This synergy is particularly useful in scenarios where data is not uniformly structured or when there's a need to Any help is appreciated! :) excel conditional-formatting edited Nov 5, 2019 at 19:27 Cyril 6,82912133 asked Nov 5, 2019 at 19:27 J. In this post, you will learn how to use wildcard characters in Excel. Attached Files EH CF_Close. Conditional Formatting Based on VLOOKUP: 1. You can use them to find and replace text, match patterns, and more. Nevertheless, the incorporation of a very simple UDF (user-defined function) in your workbook will enable you to use wild cards in Conditional formats, as well as other places. Here we discuss how to use the three types of wildcards with examples and downloadable excel template. For more about using wildcard characters with the Find and Replace features in Excel, see Find or replace text and numbers on a worksheet. Then create the one for two asterisks using text contains and ~*~* picking yellow Aug 18, 2025 · Highlight cells in Excel based on text using exact or partial match formulas, conditional formatting, or rules for rows and exclusions. Jul 30, 2012 · Thanks for the response dilipandey, but if you look at the end of my post I do know that the ISNUMBER and SEARCH functions provide a way to do this, I was just curious as to why the asterisk was seemingly working well when using the SUMIF yet wasn't when attempting to use it in the same way with the conditional formatting formula. Nov 12, 2025 · For example, if you were using Find and Replace to search for "p??ce," Excel would find both "piece" and "peace. Jul 26, 2012 · Conditional Formatting with a Wildcard Hello all, I'm looking to update an old conditional format: =ISNA (MATCH (A9,$AW$10:$AW$150,0)) with a wildcard. Learn how to use conditional formatting with OR criteria in Excel to highlight data that meets at least one condition. Master this skill for enhanced data analysis and efficient decision-making. That is what is really getting me. The most representative of the Excel conditional functions is the IF function. Unlock new efficiency and precision in your spreadsheet tasks today. Aug 14, 2025 · VLOOKUP is an Excel function to look up data in a table organized vertically. Learn how to use wildcard characters in Excel to save time when working with formulas. Apr 8, 2013 · I want to use conditional format to color all cells that containg CO2. There are two ways to do this: Pre-Defined Option or Custom Formula. Here are some examples. D. There are three Excel wildcard characters (asterisk, question mark, and tilde) that can get some amazing stuff done in Excel. 18 hours ago · Excel’s conditional formatting formulas can incorporate wildcards via functions like COUNTIF. Feb 4, 2025 · Excel, a powerful tool for data analysis and manipulation, offers a wide range of features to enhance productivity and data visualization. Here's example file. If you have numeric values, use logical operators in the formula. Conditional formatting can help make patterns and trends in your data more apparent. 94K subscribers Subscribed Jul 21, 2023 · Excel wildcard is a key function of Excel that expands the range of use when used in conditional functions. A question mark (?) matches exactly one character. Needed to update the example too since the one I gave actually gave the correct behavior for scenario 1 for some reason. The question unanswered before is if they are expected also in conditional formatting. Click OK. 111 1 Answer Sorted by: 1 Mar 18, 2023 · Learn how to highlight rows in Excel with Conditional Formatting in this tutorial. In column B, there are lists of customers. First, create the one for orange when three asterisks occur using text contains and then specifying ~*~*~*. Exploring VLOOKUP and Its Wildcard Capabilities VLOOKUP is a powerful tool in Excel that allows users to search for specific information in a dataset. This article will look at how the three are used in excel. May 30, 2025 · Excel wildcard characters are special symbols that help users perform partial matches and flexible data operations across large datasets. Click Format Button>Pattern and select your color (say Red) 5. The problem is that in Excel 2007's implementation of Conditional Formatting, the question mark appears to *only* be usable as a wildcard which represents any character, and I cannot find any way to tell Excel that I want to test cell contents for the actual question May 9, 2023 · One way to apply conditional formatting is to format an entire row based on a specific condition. Excel wildcards Conditional formatting with formulas and Wildcards- Microsoft Excel ExcelMoments 5. Mar 14, 2023 · The tutorial shows how to make Excel IF statement with wildcard text and get it to work for partial matches. csv The Jan 29, 2016 · I tried using a wild card and after searching the web it seemed like it wasn't possible. Feb 28, 2003 · Conditional formatting does not support wildcards. Jul 23, 2019 · If, like me, you include a question mark "?" in Excel cells to show where you have outstanding queries or work to do (either by itself or with some other text e. 14% (27/35) 77. " This wildcard also proves useful in conditional formatting. And a tilde (~). We would like to show you a description here but the site won’t allow us. Go to Home, then to Conditional Formatting, and select New Rule. Jan 6, 2020 · You can use wildcards for filtering, searching, or inside the formulas. Feb 22, 2020 · Conditional formatting with wildcard is it possible to fill the row with *New* excel Like Apr 10, 2025 · Combining wildcards with conditional formatting in Excel opens up a plethora of possibilities for data visualization and management. Is a wildcard possible in conditional formatting?. This comprehensive guide aims to demystify wildcards in Excel for beginners, intermediate users, and advanced users alike. Hello. Jun 15, 2024 · Learn how to highlight a row if any cell contains any text by using the FIND, and SEARCH functions, and making a drop-down list in Excel. Logical operators and wildcards in these conditional functions are useful the more you know about them. Unlock the secrets of using wildcards in Excel's IF function in this detailed tutorial. The Formatting would need to apply to each day in the week across multiple weeks. Jun 22, 2007 · In other words, can wildcards be used in conditional formatting formulas? I know they work when using conditional formatting "Format only cells that contain" (but that only gets the specific cells, not the rows the cells are in), but it doesn't seem to work when using "Use a formula to determine which cells to format" (e. Sep 18, 2024 · Excel Wildcard characters and Examples As we mentioned above, wildcards only work with text. What operator can I use as nothing obvious appears to work" Apr 29, 2020 · hi how would i conditionally format fill an entire row if column E contains "partial" same if column J contains "deductions" May 18, 2023 · Explanation The goal of this formula is to verify whether the values in column B follow the format xx-xxxx-xxx, where "x" represents any single character. I'm trying to set up a conditional format so my cells will be filled if the value includes a specific text string, but I need to use wildcards before and after the specific text string. =ISLIKE(A1, "LS*", FALSE) Will return TRUE for LS, LST and Lst. "CO2 - 2KG" but I want to color all cells that contain CO2. Scenario: Highlight cells in column E that contain the substring "report" anywhere within the text. One such feature is conditional formatting, which allows users to apply specific formatting rules based on certain conditions. I'd like to use conditional formatting to highlight one digit values with a certain color like gray, two digit values with another color like green, and three digit values with another color like red. Instead, we can combine the IF function with the COUNTIF function, which does support wildcards. In Excel, just like using a formula, you can use conditional formatting to highlight a cell if it contains a specific text. To make these “priority” orders stand out, you use conditional formatting to highlight any cell in column A containing the word “priority”. Oct 23, 2024 · Utilize Excel's wildcard characters within IF statements to perform powerful text-based calculations. Dates in excel are how many days have passed since 1/0/1900 (43676 in your example), and are then displayed as something that people recognize as a date. The manner in which the old CF worked was to change the font color of the data to show red when the value didn't exactly match what was being typed in. I would like to highlight any rows where the customer has the text value "TDMN" somewhere in cell B for Aug 30, 2024 · To learn all about using wildcard characters in Excel, continue reading the guide below. This function tells you the first index (starting character position) of some… Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like Which of the following is not an aggregate function that can be applied in a total row?, Which of the following characters is a wildcard in Excel?, Which of the following conditional formatting rules cannot be applied using Quick Analysis? and more. Select custom to pick an orange background. Columns A, B, C, and D. Wed 77. Follow This Guide with Screenshots & Examples. If you’re an Excel user, you’ve probably heard of wildcards. This can include using formulas, color scales, or data bars to emphasize Sep 1, 2023 · Highlight missing values in Excel using the Question Mark wildcard and conditional formatting. In Excel, you can use three different wildcards to build a formula. lkjwq cpazf amac rwvkz evwnf ury vpehtrmp rgzy laaoxr yckqz nlk jzputg vfzjxw fusqog wybr