How to return a value by its position number with CHOOSE in Excel
Formula (Excel and Google Sheets)
=CHOOSE(B2,"Very poor","Poor","Neutral","Good","Excellent")CHOOSE returns the item at the position you give it: =CHOOSE(B2,"Very poor","Poor","Neutral","Good","Excellent").
- Result on the example
- one result per row in
C2, filled down toC7 - Works in
- Every current version
- Google Sheets
- Same formula
See it work
The formula is already in C2, filled down to C7. Change any input and the result updates, or edit the formula to experiment.
How it works
The first argument of CHOOSE is a position and the rest are the options. A rating of 4 returns the 4th option, "Good". It is a lookup for short, fixed lists numbered from 1, with the list written inside the formula.
=CHOOSE(B2,"Very poor","Poor","Neutral","Good","Excellent")Result"Good"
B24The value in B2.
CHOOSE(B2,"Very poor","Poor","Neutral","Good","Excellent")"Good"CHOOSE: Picks a value by its position in the list.- index_num
B24 - value1
"Very poor" - value2
"Poor" - value2
"Neutral" - value3
"Good" - value4
"Excellent"
- index_num
In Google Sheets
The same formula works in Google Sheets: =CHOOSE(B2,"Very poor","Poor","Neutral","Good","Excellent"). We ran it in Google Sheets mode on the same data and it returns the same results.
Other ways to do it
Each one was run on the same example sheet.
| Formula | Result | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| =INDEX({"Very poor","Poor","Neutral","Good","Excellent"},B2) | Good, Poor, Excellent… | INDEX on a list in braces does the same, and the list is easy to move into cells later. |
| =SWITCH(B2,1,"Very poor",2,"Poor",3,"Neutral",4,"Good",5,"Excellent") | Good, Poor, Excellent… | SWITCH pairs each value with its result, so the values don't have to be 1, 2, 3. Excel 2019 and later. |
Common mistakes
- A position of 0, a blank or a number above the number of options returns #VALUE!.
- Decimals are truncated: 4.7 returns the 4th option.
- For long or changing lists, keep the labels in cells and use XLOOKUP; editing a formula for every change is error-prone.
Try it yourself
Same data, empty answer cell. Your formula is graded instantly, then re-checked on changed data, so a typed-in number won't pass.
Return a value by its position number with CHOOSE
C2, turn the rating into its label, then fill down to C7.Questions
Can CHOOSE return a range?
Yes. =SUM(CHOOSE(F1,B2:B10,C2:C10,D2:D10)) totals the column picked by F1.
How do I turn a month number into a quarter?
List the quarter for each month: =CHOOSE(MONTH(A2),1,1,1,2,2,2,3,3,3,4,4,4).
Checked by running on 2026-10-30: every formula and result on this page was calculated by the Spreadsheet Practice formula engine, in both Excel and Google Sheets modes.