Is REGEXTEST available in Excel 2019?

No on desktop Excel 2019. REGEXTEST requires Excel 2021 or Microsoft 365 with a build that includes the function.

What is the difference between REGEXTEST and regular FIND?

FIND searches for a fixed substring. REGEXTEST matches flexible patterns such as email formats, IDs with hyphens, or digit counts using regular expression syntax.

Why does REGEXTEST return #VALUE!?

Usually an invalid regex pattern or an argument that is not text. Escape special characters correctly and wrap patterns in double quotes.

Why does my formula show an error?

Open the linked error pages (#N/A, #VALUE!, #REF!) from our directory. Most formula posts fail because of data type mismatches, deleted references, or wrong match modes — not because the function name is wrong.

Should I copy formulas down or use a Table?

Copying down is fine for one-off models. Convert the range to an Excel Table when you add rows often — structured references stay readable and break less.

Formulas - 2026-06-09

REGEXTEST in Excel: Pattern Matching Guide (With Examples)

Learn how to use the Excel REGEXTEST function to validate emails, IDs, and text patterns. Includes match_mode syntax, real examples, and fixes for #VALUE! errors.

What REGEXTEST Does in Excel

REGEXTEST is a dynamic array-era function that checks whether text matches a regular expression pattern. It returns TRUE or FALSE, which makes it ideal for data validation, cleaning imported files, and flagging rows that fail a format rule. Basic syntax: \\\ =REGEXTEST(text, pattern, [case_insensitive]) \\\ text — the cell or string to test pattern — a regex pattern in double quotes case_insensitive — optional; TRUE ignores upper/lower case (default FALSE) REGEXTEST is available in Microsoft 365 and Excel 2021 builds that include dynamic array functions. It will show #NAME? in Excel 2019 and older.

Example 1: Validate Email-Like Text

Flag rows where column A does not look like an email: \\\ =REGEXTEST(A2, "^[\\w.-]+@[\\w.-]+\\.[A-Za-z]{2,}$") \\\ Copy down to audit an export. FALSE rows need manual review before a mail merge. For a friendly label: \\\ =IF(REGEXTEST(A2, "^[\\w.-]+@[\\w.-]+\\.[A-Za-z]{2,}$"), "OK", "Check email") \\\

Example 2: Product SKU Format

Require SKUs like \ABC-1234\ (three letters, hyphen, four digits): \\\ =REGEXTEST(B2, "^[A-Z]{3}-\\d{4}$") \\\ Use with conditional formatting to highlight invalid SKUs before VLOOKUP or XLOOKUP runs on the column.

Example 3: Contains a Word (Partial Match)

Check whether a cell contains "North" as a whole word: \\\ =REGEXTEST(C2, "\\bNorth\\b") \\\ This is often cleaner than nested FIND and SEARCH when you need word boundaries.

Example 4: Audit Phone Numbers (US-Style)

Simple 10-digit pattern (adjust for your locale): \\\ =REGEXTEST(D2, "^\\d{3}-\\d{3}-\\d{4}$") \\\ Pair with TRIM first if imports include spaces: \\\ =REGEXTEST(TRIM(D2), "^\\d{3}-\\d{3}-\\d{4}$") \\\

REGEXTEST vs FIND, SEARCH, and Data Validation

Approach Best for REGEXTEST Flexible patterns (emails, IDs, codes) FIND / SEARCH Simple substring checks Data Validation Blocking bad input at entry time Use REGEXTEST in helper columns during audits; use Data Validation to prevent bad data upstream.

Common Errors

#VALUE! — Invalid regex syntax. Escape backslashes in Excel strings (use \\\\\d\ not \\\d\ in some patterns). #NAME? — Function not available in your Excel version. Always TRUE/FALSE — Pattern too broad or text already normalized; test on three known rows first.

Related Resources

FILTER function — return rows that pass a logic test IF function — label rows based on REGEXTEST TRIM function — clean text before pattern tests Fix #VALUE! errors Excel text functions guide

Formula debugging workflow

Step Action 1 Select the cell and read the formula in the formula bar 2 Use Formulas → Evaluate Formula for nested functions 3 Check for text stored as numbers (green triangle) 4 Fix errors using our formula error guide Go deeper: Compare similar functions · Fix common problems

Frequently asked questions

Is REGEXTEST available in Excel 2019? No on desktop Excel 2019. REGEXTEST requires Excel 2021 or Microsoft 365 with a build that includes the function.
What is the difference between REGEXTEST and regular FIND? FIND searches for a fixed substring. REGEXTEST matches flexible patterns such as email formats, IDs with hyphens, or digit counts using regular expression syntax.
Why does REGEXTEST return #VALUE!? Usually an invalid regex pattern or an argument that is not text. Escape special characters correctly and wrap patterns in double quotes.
Why does my formula show an error? Open the linked error pages (#N/A, #VALUE!, #REF!) from our directory. Most formula posts fail because of data type mismatches, deleted references, or wrong match modes — not because the function name is wrong.
Should I copy formulas down or use a Table? Copying down is fine for one-off models. Convert the range to an Excel Table when you add rows often — structured references stay readable and break less.