Test Whether a Cell Is Filled or Empty

Excel & Google Sheets

How it works

A2<>"" asks "is this cell anything other than empty text?" A truly empty cell compares equal to "", so it fails the test and returns Missing; any real entry returns Filled. The subtle case is a cell whose formula returned "" — say a lookup wrapped in IFERROR(…,""). To your eye it's blank, and A2<>"" agrees and says Missing. ISBLANK does not: it tests whether the cell contains literally nothing, and a cell holding a formula isn't nothing, so ISBLANK calls it filled. For "does this row have data I can act on," the <>"" test almost always gives the answer you mean.

A2<>""

TRUE when the cell holds anything other than empty text — a value, a date, even a zero.

"Filled"

Returned when something usable is there.

"Missing"

Returned for truly empty cells and for formulas that produced "".

When to use it

Use it to flag invoices without PO numbers, orders without tracking codes, or CRM rows without an owner — any completeness check before a report goes out or a payment is approved.

Common mistakes

• ✕Using ISBLANK on cells that contain formulas.

  ✓A cell whose formula returns "" looks empty but ISBLANK returns FALSE — the cell holds a formula, so it counts as filled. Test A2<>"" (or A2="") when formula-made blanks should count as missing.

• ✕Cells that look empty but hold a space.

  ✓A stray space fails A2="" and shows Filled. Trim before testing: =IF(TRIM(A2)<>"","Filled","Missing").

• ✕Treating zero as missing.

  ✓0<>"" is TRUE, so a zero shows Filled — usually right, since 0 is real data. If zero should also count as missing, test both: =IF(AND(A2<>"",A2<>0),"Filled","Missing").