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Lookup function

CHOOSE

Returns one item from a list based on an index number.

CommonDifficulty 1100 · ProficientUsage rank #58 of 520
Practice · 3 questions →

When to use it

Picks one value from a list by position. A compact alternative to nested IFs when the selector is a small integer.

The shape of it

Syntax
=CHOOSE(index_num, value1, [value2], ...)

Worked examples

  • Pick by number

    =CHOOSE(2,"Low","Mid","High") → Mid

    The second item.

  • Weekday names

    =CHOOSE(WEEKDAY(A1),"Sun","Mon","Tue","Wed","Thu","Fri","Sat") → Sat

    A1 is 3/15/2025, a Saturday. TEXT(A1,"ddd") does this more simply.

  • Route to a cell

    =CHOOSE(MATCH(A1,{"Q1","Q2","Q3","Q4"},0),B1,C1,D1,E1) → 48,200

    Route to a different cell per quarter.

Worth knowing

  • Up to 254 choices.
  • CHOOSE({1,2},range1,range2) builds a two-column array for VLOOKUP that looks left.
  • SWITCH is clearer when the selector is text.

Where it goes wrong

  • #VALUE! when the index is below 1 or above the number of choices.
  • Non-integer indexes are truncated.

Related

VLOOKUPXLOOKUPINDEXMATCHROWHLOOKUP

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