In today’s world, Excel files are widely used in businesses dealing with customer databases, employee data, sales reports, inventory or finance-related information. Yet, manual comparison between two spreadsheets may take much effort and result in mistakes, especially if those files have large amounts of data. If you want to know how to compare two Excel files for matches, there are several methods mentioned in this article for you.

Table of Contents Hide
      1. Common Reasons Explained to Compare Excel Files
      2. How to Compare Two Excel Files and Remove Duplicates Professionally?
      3. Detailed Steps of the Automated Solution
      4. Why to Choose this Advanced Tool?
      5. Compare using the IF Formula
      6. Contrast Excel Spreadsheet For Matches with VLOOKUP
      7. Compare Two Excel Files using XLOOKUP Feature
      8. Compare Spreadsheets for Matches with Power Query
      9. Concluding Words!

Why to Compare Two Excel Files? Reasons Explained

In this section, you will learn some common reasons before knowing the solutions on how to compare two Excel files for matches. The reasons are:

  • Check Updated Customer Database: Organizations always update their customer’s information like contact numbers or purchase records. Comparison will help to ensure that the customer database is up-to-date.
  • Compare Employee Record or Human Resource Database: Human Resource Departments maintain the database of employees’ attendance or payroll in separate Excel File. Comparison helps to verify attendance record.
  • Inventory Records for Stock Change: Inventory records of retail store, warehouse or manufacturing organization can be compared at different dates to know what has been added, subtracted or sold from the inventory.
  • Locating Duplicate Invoices or Transactions: Finance departments compare invoices or transactions to detect any duplicate invoicing, billing, payment, or double entry for a transaction. This helps them to avoid accounting mistakes or losses.

Method 1: How to Compare Two Excel Files and Remove Duplicates Quickly?

Excel’s built-in features are useful for comparing small datasets, they can become slow and difficult to manage when the users have large datasets with thousands of rows and multiple Excel Worksheets. The trusted SysTools Excel Duplicates Remover Tool provides an effective approach by allowing users to compare Excel files, identify and remove duplicate rows in Excel sheet within just a few clicks. This professional tool supports multiple formats of Excel files such as XLSX, XLS, XLSM, XLSB, XLTX, XLT, XLTM, and many more. Also, the software compares data based on one or multiple columns while preserving the original formatting and processes large workbooks efficiently. Moreover, this expert utility is an ideal solution for users who want to know how to compare two Excel files for matches in less time and effort.

Detailed Steps of the Automated Solution

  1. Install and run the professional tool on your computer.download and install
  2. Then, choose between the Add file and Add folder options.click on the Add file or Add folder option
  3. To know how to compare two Excel files for matches, choose the dual Removal options from the tab.choose dual duplicate options
  4. Next, choose the “Delete Duplicates permanently” or “Export it in a separate file” option.choose action mode
  5. Now, select the Remove Duplicate Based on options.choose remove duplicates based on option
  6. After that, choose the destination folder to save the cleaned file.select the destination path
  7. At last, tap on the Remove Duplicates button to begin the process to learn how to compare two Excel files for matches quickly.tap on the export button

Why Choose this Advanced Tool?

Here, we have mentioned some prime features of this professional tool that make it a reliable solution for users.

  • This software compares multiple Excel files and worksheets quickly.
  • The tool also helps find duplicates in Excel with multiple columns easily.
  • It removes duplicate entries without affecting the original data structure or formatting.
  • The software process large Excel workbooks efficiently without performance issues.
  • This advanced utility works completely offline without requiring an internet connection.
  • The tool is simple and easy to use for both technical and non-technical users.

Method 2: How to Compare Two Excel Files for Matches using the IF Formula?

If both the Excel files have a similar row structure, then using the IF formula can quickly compare the corresponding cells and return matching results. The following steps are given:

For Example:

  • File 1 contains data in Column A
  • File 2 contains data in Column B
Use this formula:

=IF(A2=B2, "Match", "Not Match")
Drag the formula downwards

Now, the Excel will display:

  • Match
  • Not Match

Advantages:

  • This method is easy to customize.
  • It is effective for row-by-row verification.

Disadvantages:

  • This requires identical row positions.
  • It is not useful for shuffled datasets.

Method 3: How to Contrast Excel Spreadsheet For Matches using VLOOKUP?

This method is useful when you want to find if a value from one Excel file is existing in another. The steps to know how to compare two Excel files for matches using VLOOKUP are as follows:

Formula: =IF(ISNA(VLOOKUP(A2,Sheet2!A:A,1,FALSE)),"No Match", "Match")

Steps are:

  1. Firstly, open both spreadsheets.
  2. Then, keep them in one workbook.
  3. After that, insert the formula.
  4. At last, copy it down for all rows.

Advantages:

  • This solution is accurate for searching.
  • The tool is ideal for large datasets.
  • This method helps to find matching records quickly.

Disadvantages:

  • It searches only from left to right.
  • This method is difficult for beginners.

Method 4: How to Compare Two Excel Files for Matches using XLOOKUP?

If you are using Microsoft Excel 365 or Excel 2021, XLOOKUP offers a reliable way to compare Excel spreadsheets with the formula given below:

=XLOOKUP(A2,Sheet2!A:A,Sheet2!A:A,"Not Found")

Advantages:

  • It is more flexible than the VLOOKUP method.
  • This method helps to search in any direction.
  • Handles missing values efficiently.

Disadvantages:

  • This method is available in newer Excel versions.
  • It requires a proper understanding of Excel formulas.
  • The performances may slow down when comparing large datasets.

Method 5: How to Compare Two Excel Spreadsheets for Matches with Power Query?

The Power Query is an advanced Excel feature designed for importing, cleaning, and comparing the data stored in Excel file. The steps to know how to compare two Excel files for matches are as follows:

  1. Firstly, open the Excel application.
  2. Then, go to the Data tab > Get Data.
  3. After this, import both Excel files.
  4. Now, load them into Power Query.
  5. Then, choose the Merge Queries.
  6. Next, choose the join type, and then compare the records.
  7. At last, load the final result back into Excel.

Advantages:

  • This Power Query solution handles thousands of rows.
  • It works with large Excel Workbooks as well.
  • This method is excellent for recurring comparisons.

Disadvantages:

  • It requires basic knowledge of Power Query to use effectively.
  • This method involves multiple setups and configuration steps.
  • It is not ideal for users who need quick comparison.

Concluding Words!

In this article, we have discussed how to compare two Excel files for matches instantly. Here, we have included both manual and automated solutions. We have discussed built-in ways for small and basic comparisons. But for large datasets and redundant data, we have advised users to choose the automated solution.