IT153 · Unit 5

IT153 Unit 5 lookup function exercise example

Spreadsheet Applications Purdue University Global Free custom sample in 24 to 48h

Mispricing a box of screws is the error a composite hardware store's counter invoice exists to prevent, and the IT153 Unit 5 lookup function exercise in this example prevents it by pulling each description and price from a sixty-item product list, then applying a volume discount from a tier table, with the match type chosen deliberately each time.

What this page holds

Each SKU typed on this IT153 Unit 5 invoice pulls its description and price from a named product table, while an approximate-match tier list sets the discount. Searches like "it 153 unit 5 assignment example", "it153 unit 5 sample" and "it153 unit 5 example" land here.

What a finished IT153 Unit 5 lookup function exercise looks like

Four tabs. Products holds sixty composite items in an Excel table named tblProducts, with SKU, description, unit and unit price. Tiers is a small table of order-total breakpoints, $0, $250, $500 and $1,000, beside discount rates of 0, 3, 5 and 8 percent, sorted ascending because approximate matching depends on that order. Invoice has a header with a composite customer and invoice number, then twelve line rows: SKU typed in column A, description and unit price returned by VLOOKUP with FALSE as the last argument, quantity typed, and line total calculated. IFERROR wraps each lookup so a mistyped SKU shows Check SKU instead of #N/A. Below the lines, the subtotal feeds a VLOOKUP with TRUE against Tiers to set the discount. The fourth tab is a lookup guide.

How a IT153 Unit 5 example is structured

The file separates reference data from the transaction that uses it, which is the whole logic of a lookup. Products and Tiers are maintained on their own tabs and never edited from the invoice; the invoice only asks them questions. The two lookups are deliberately different: descriptions and prices need an exact match, since SKU 4417 must never return the neighboring item, while the discount needs an approximate match, since a $380 order falls between breakpoints and should take the tier below it. The lookup range is a named table, so adding a sixty-first product extends every lookup without editing a formula. Column index numbers are chosen against the table's layout and recorded in the guide tab, which explains each argument and shows an XLOOKUP version of the price formula for sections using newer Excel.

Product table

Sixty composite items in an Excel table named tblProducts: SKU, description, unit and price. Using a named table as the lookup range means new rows are included automatically and every formula reads clearly.

Exact-match lookups on the invoice

Description and unit price come from VLOOKUP with FALSE, so a SKU either matches exactly or returns nothing. The column index numbers, 2 and 4, are recorded in the guide beside the table's column order.

Approximate-match discount

The subtotal is looked up against four ascending breakpoints with TRUE, returning the rate for the highest breakpoint not exceeding it. A $380 subtotal takes the 3 percent tier, and the sample includes that case.

Error handling

IFERROR returns Check SKU for any code not in the product list, and blank SKU rows return empty strings rather than errors, so an invoice with only five lines still looks finished.

Lookup guide tab

Each lookup explained argument by argument, the difference between the two match types stated in a sentence, and an equivalent XLOOKUP shown for comparison where a section works in a newer version.

Where marks go in IT153 Unit 5

Lookup exercises have two signature failures. The first is an exact lookup written without FALSE, which lets VLOOKUP default to approximate matching and return the wrong product whenever the SKU list is unsorted or the code is missing; the invoice looks complete and is wrong. The second is the reverse, an approximate discount lookup against a tier table sorted high to low, which returns errors or the wrong rate. Table ranges written as relative references drift when copied down the invoice, so later rows search only part of the list. Column index numbers that count from the sheet edge instead of the table edge pull the wrong field. Unhandled #N/A errors on blank rows cost presentation points in many sections. Strong files test a missing SKU and a boundary subtotal on purpose, and document both.

Get a IT153 Unit 5 example written to your instructions

Share the product list or data file from the Unit 5 assignment together with its instructions and rubric, and mention whether your IT153 section works in VLOOKUP or XLOOKUP. The invoice, or whatever form your prompt describes, is modeled on those items with a lookup guide beside it, delivered in 24-48h, the first one free of charge.

IT153 Unit 5 questions, answered

Why does VLOOKUP return the wrong item instead of an error?

Almost always because the last argument is missing or set to TRUE, which tells VLOOKUP to find the closest match rather than an exact one. On an unsorted list, or with a code that does not exist, it quietly returns a neighbor. Setting the last argument to FALSE, or using XLOOKUP, which matches exactly by default, stops it.

What does #N/A mean in a lookup?

It means the lookup value was not found in the first column of the table, either because it truly is not there or because of a mismatch, such as a SKU stored as text in one place and as a number in the other, or a stray space. IFERROR can replace the message with something readable, but the underlying mismatch still deserves a look.

Should I learn VLOOKUP or XLOOKUP for this course?

Whichever your section's materials teach, and many IT153 sections still grade VLOOKUP explicitly because it appears in older versions of Excel and in countless workplace files. XLOOKUP is simpler and more flexible where it is available. Knowing both helps, and the sample shows the price lookup written each way so the arguments can be compared side by side.