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IFERROR vs IFNA: which to use in Excel and Sheets
Excel & Google Sheets
=IFERROR(VLOOKUP(A2,B2:B6,1,FALSE),"Not found")✓
Verified example
Computed by a real spreadsheet engine on the sample data below.
| Lookup | Source |
| Alice | Alice |
| Bob | Carol |
| Zara | Bob |
| Carol | David |
| David | Eve |
=IFERROR(VLOOKUP(A2,B2:B6,1,FALSE),"Not found")→Not found
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Step by step
- 1Use IFERROR when you want to suppress any error and replace it with a friendly message: =IFERROR(formula, "fallback").
- 2Use IFNA when your formula should only hide #N/A (the 'not found' result from lookups): =IFNA(VLOOKUP(A2,range,col,FALSE),"Not found").
- 3Prefer IFNA in lookup formulas so that real errors like #REF! or #VALUE! still surface and can be debugged.
- 4Nest IFNA inside IFERROR only when you need different messages for #N/A vs other errors: =IFERROR(IFNA(formula,"Not found"),"Formula error").
Tips
- Favour IFNA over IFERROR in VLOOKUP and XLOOKUP formulas to avoid accidentally hiding formula mistakes caused by mistyped ranges.
Need it for your exact data?
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Frequently asked
Is IFNA available in all Excel versions?
IFNA was introduced in Excel 2013. It is also available in all versions of Google Sheets.
Can I use IFERROR and IFNA together?
Yes — wrap IFNA inside IFERROR to return one message for #N/A and a different message for all other errors.