Why Merging queries (joins) in Excel? - Purpose & Use Cases

The Big Idea

Discover how to instantly connect separate lists and save hours of tedious work!

The Scenario

Imagine you have two lists in Excel: one with customer names and another with their orders. You want to see which customer made which order, but the lists are separate.

Doing this by hand means looking up each customer in the orders list and writing down their orders next to their name.

The Problem

Manually matching customers to orders is slow and tiring. It's easy to make mistakes, like missing a customer or mixing up orders.

When the lists grow bigger, this task becomes overwhelming and error-prone.

The Solution

Merging queries (joins) in Excel lets you combine these lists automatically. You tell Excel to match customers with their orders, and it does the work for you.

This saves time and avoids mistakes, giving you a clear combined list instantly.

Before vs After

✗ Before

Look up each customer name in orders list and copy orders manually

✓ After

=XLOOKUP(A2, Orders!A:A, Orders!B:B, "Not found")

What It Enables

It lets you quickly combine related data from different tables to get a full picture without manual work.

Real Life Example

A sales manager merges customer info with sales data to see who bought what, helping them understand sales trends easily.

Key Takeaways

Manual matching is slow and error-prone.

Merging queries automates combining related data.

This saves time and improves accuracy in your spreadsheets.

Practice

1. What does merging queries (joins) in Excel usually help you do?

easy

A. Combine data from two tables based on a common value

B. Sort data alphabetically

C. Create charts from data

D. Format cells with colors

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the purpose of merging queries

   Merging queries means joining data from two tables using a common value to combine related information.

2. Step 2: Identify what merging queries does in Excel

   It helps to combine and compare data easily without manual copying or sorting.

3. Final Answer:

   Combine data from two tables based on a common value -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Merging queries = Combine data [OK]

Hint: Merging joins tables by matching common values [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing merging with sorting
• Thinking it creates charts
• Assuming it changes cell colors

2. Which of these is the correct syntax to merge two tables using XLOOKUP in Excel?

easy

A. =XLOOKUP(A2, Table2[Value], Table2[ID])

B. =XLOOKUP(Table2[Value], A2, Table2[ID])

C. =XLOOKUP(Table2[ID], Table2[Value], A2)

D. =XLOOKUP(A2, Table2[ID], Table2[Value])

Solution

1. Step 1: Recall XLOOKUP syntax

   XLOOKUP(lookup_value, lookup_array, return_array) finds lookup_value in lookup_array and returns corresponding value from return_array.

2. Step 2: Match syntax to merging tables

   We want to find A2 (key) in Table2[ID] and return Table2[Value], so =XLOOKUP(A2, Table2[ID], Table2[Value]) is correct.

3. Final Answer:

   =XLOOKUP(A2, Table2[ID], Table2[Value]) -> Option D

4. Quick Check:

   XLOOKUP syntax = lookup_value, lookup_array, return_array [OK]

Hint: XLOOKUP: lookup_value, lookup_array, return_array order [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Swapping lookup_array and return_array
• Using wrong column references
• Putting return_array before lookup_array

3. Given these tables:

Table1:
ID | Name
1 | Alice
2 | Bob

Table2:
ID | Score
1 | 85
3 | 90

If you use =XLOOKUP(A2, Table2[ID], Table2[Score], "Not Found") in Table1 where A2=1, what is the result?

medium

A. 85

B. 90

C. Not Found

D. 1

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the lookup

   The formula looks for A2=1 in Table2[ID]. Table2 has ID 1 with Score 85.

2. Step 2: Return the matching Score

   Since ID 1 is found, XLOOKUP returns 85 from Table2[Score].

3. Final Answer:

   85 -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Lookup 1 returns 85 [OK]

Hint: XLOOKUP returns matching value or fallback if none [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Choosing score for ID 3 instead of 1
• Confusing fallback value with result
• Returning ID instead of Score

4. You wrote this formula to merge data:
=XLOOKUP(A2, Table2[Value], Table2[ID])
But it returns wrong results. What is the likely error?

medium

A. Used wrong function name

B. Forgot to lock cell references

C. Swapped lookup_array and return_array columns

D. Used incorrect table name

Solution

1. Step 1: Check XLOOKUP parameters

   lookup_array should be the column with keys to find (e.g., IDs), return_array the column with values to return.

2. Step 2: Identify swapped columns

   Using Table2[Value] as lookup_array and Table2[ID] as return_array is reversed; it should be lookup ID, return Value.

3. Final Answer:

   Swapped lookup_array and return_array columns -> Option C

4. Quick Check:

   Lookup and return arrays must be in correct order [OK]

Hint: Lookup array must be key column, return array the value column [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Mixing lookup and return columns
• Assuming function name is wrong
• Ignoring cell reference locking

5. You have two tables:

Employees:
ID | Name
101 | John
102 | Mary
103 | Steve

Salaries:
ID | Salary
101 | 5000
103 | 4500

You want to create a merged table showing all employees and their salaries, showing "No Data" if salary is missing. Which formula in cell C2 (next to Name) correctly merges salaries?

hard

A. =XLOOKUP(Name, Salaries[ID], Salaries[Salary], "No Data")

B. =XLOOKUP(A2, Salaries[ID], Salaries[Salary], "No Data")

C. =XLOOKUP(A2, Salaries[Salary], Salaries[ID], "No Data")

D. =XLOOKUP(A2, Employees[ID], Salaries[Salary], "No Data")

Solution

1. Step 1: Identify lookup value and arrays

   We want to find employee ID in Salaries[ID] and return Salaries[Salary]. If not found, show "No Data".

2. Step 2: Check formula correctness

   =XLOOKUP(A2, Salaries[ID], Salaries[Salary], "No Data") uses =XLOOKUP(A2, Salaries[ID], Salaries[Salary], "No Data"), which matches the requirement perfectly.

3. Final Answer:

   =XLOOKUP(A2, Salaries[ID], Salaries[Salary], "No Data") -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Lookup ID in Salaries, return Salary or fallback [OK]

Hint: Use XLOOKUP with fallback to handle missing data [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Using wrong lookup or return columns
• Referencing Name instead of ID
• Mixing tables in lookup arrays