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ISREF
ISREF tests whether its argument is a valid reference to a cell or range, returning TRUE if so and FALSE if it is a value, error, or text. It is particularly useful inside INDIRECT or dynamic reference formulas to guard against invalid sheet names or addresses that would otherwise produce a #REF! error.
Excel
=ISREF(A2)Google Sheets
=ISREF(A2)✓
Verified example
Computed by a real spreadsheet engine on the sample data below.
| Input | IsRef? |
| A1 | TRUE |
| Sheet1!B2 | TRUE |
| Hello | FALSE |
=ISREF(A2)→FALSE
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How it works
- 1Pass a cell reference or an expression that might be a reference to ISREF.
- 2It returns TRUE for valid references and FALSE for literal values or text strings.
- 3Useful with INDIRECT: =IF(ISREF(INDIRECT(A2)),INDIRECT(A2),"Invalid ref") prevents #REF! errors.
Need a version for your data?
Try: “Check whether a dynamically constructed cell address is a valid reference before using it”