About finding data

The Find what feature (Commands and Options dialog box, Sheet tab) can locate text, numbers, dates, and times that have been entered directly into cells or that are the results of formulas.

Keep the following guidelines in mind when using Find what options:

• Match case   By default, Find what is not case sensitive. To find only those cells with values that match the case of your entry, select the Match case check box.
• Entire cell only   By default, Find what searches for cells that include the value you enter in the Find what box. For example, an entry of "John" finds cells with strings such as "Johnson" or "Little John." To find cells that contain only the value you entered and nothing else, select the Entire cell only check box.
• Formatted values   The Find what feature searches for displayed values, not formats. For example, suppose a cell is formatted with the Yes/No number format. If the cell contains a zero (0), the cell displays the word No, and you can use Find what to locate the phrase "No". You can't use Find what to find all cells formatted with a particular color or font.
• Search direction   The Find what feature searches from left to right across the columns of the first row, and then from left to right across the columns of the second row, and so on.
• Wildcard characters   The Find what feature does not allow wildcard characters such as question mark (?) and asterisk (*).
• Hidden data   The Find what feature does not find data in hidden cells or cells hidden by filtering.