Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Excel 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Excel, click here: Comparing Strings.

Comparing Strings

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated April 26, 2025)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


It is not uncommon to compare strings in a macro. For instance, you may need to compare what a user typed with some pre-determined value. If you do this directly, you must take into consideration that the user may not have typed his (or her) string in the same way as you expected. Particularly vexing is the fact that the user may have mixed upper and lower case in their response.

The quickest and easiest way around this is to use either the UCase() or LCase() function on their input before you do the comparison. For instance, let's assume you prompt the user for the word "yes" to verify they want an action done. The following code will check the input, regardless of how the user typed it.

If LCase(sUserIn) = "yes" then bDoIt = True

The trick is make sure your test string is either all upper or all lower case, and then convert the user's input to that same case.

Note:

If you would like to know how to use the macros described on this page (or on any other page on the ExcelTips sites), I've prepared a special page that includes helpful information. Click here to open that special page in a new browser tab.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2279) applies to Microsoft Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. You can find a version of this tip for the ribbon interface of Excel (Excel 2007 and later) here: Comparing Strings.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

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