It finds one text string that exists inside another text string and returns the position within the second string, from which the first one begins. It is case-sensitive and doesn’t allow wildcard characters.
For case-insensitive search use the SEARCH function.
The syntax of the function is the following:
FIND(find_text, within_text, [start_num])
find_text: The text you are searching for.
within_text: The text containing the text you are searching for.
[start_num]: Optional. The starting position within the string of the within_text argument, from which the search will begin. The default value is 1 (the first character of the within_text string).
If find_text is an empty string FIND returns the start_num of the search.
If find_text is not found then the #VALUE! error is returned.
If start_num is less than or equal to zero, or if it is greater than the length of the within_text string then the #VALUE! error is returned.
Click on the button to practice using this function, with the help of our Online Assessment Tool:
Here is an example of how to use the FIND function:
In the cell A2 calculate the position of the word TEST4U inside the text of the cell A1. (Note: The function you use should be case sensitive)