Answer

An IF formula checks whether a text condition is true or false. Excel evaluates text by comparing the exact characters in the referenced cell to the text value inside the formula.

How to check if a cell contains text

To check text, Excel uses logical comparisons along with the SEARCH or FIND function.

1. Exact text match

A direct comparison identifies whether a cell holds a specific text value.

=IF(A1="Apple","Match","No Match")

This formula returns “Match” when A1 contains Apple as the only content.

2. Partial text match

A partial match identifies whether the text appears anywhere within the cell.

=IF(ISNUMBER(SEARCH("Apple",A1)),"Found","Not Found")

SEARCH locates the index of the text.
ISNUMBER confirms the returned index is a number.

3. Check if a cell contains any text

The formula below checks for text of any kind.

=IF(ISTEXT(A1),"Text","Not Text")

This method identifies alphabetic characters, words, or mixed strings.

4. Check if a cell is not blank and contains text

The condition treats empty cells differently from text cells.

=IF(AND(A1<>"",ISTEXT(A1)),"Text Present","No Text")

The combination ensures Excel detects only meaningful text entries.

How to run IF with text on Windows vs. Mac

The formulas are identical.
Shortcut differences appear only when inserting functions:

Windows

1. Press Shift + F3 to open Insert Function.

2. Select IF.

3. Enter logical test, true result, and false result.

Mac

1. Press fn + Shift + F3 to open Insert Function.

2. Select IF.

3. Enter logical test, true result, and false result.

Best practices for IF with text

1. Use SEARCH for case-insensitive checks.

2. Use FIND for case-sensitive checks.

3. Wrap the function in ISNUMBER when searching text.

4. Use quotation marks around text in formulas.

5. Avoid extra spaces to prevent mismatches.

When to use wildcards with IF

Wildcards work only with functions that support pattern matching, such as COUNTIF, SUMIF, or IFS.

Example pattern match inside IF:

=IF(COUNTIF(A1,"*Apple*")>0,"Found","Not Found")

The asterisks allow the formula to detect the word even when it appears inside longer strings.

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