IFERROR in Excel: hide #N/A and #DIV/0! errors

Errors like #N/A and #DIV/0! are correct but ugly. IFERROR lets you show something else — a dash, a zero, a message, or nothing.

The formula

=IFERROR(your_formula, what_to_show_instead)

Steps

1. A formula that sometimes errors, e.g. =A2/B2 where B2 can be 0.
2. Wrap it: =IFERROR(A2/B2, "—"). Enter.

Rows where B is 0 show a dash instead of #DIV/0!.

Lookups that find nothing

=IFERROR(VLOOKUP(D1, A:B, 2, FALSE), "Not found")

XLOOKUP has this built in as its 4th part, so it does not need IFERROR.

Show a blank

Use two quotes with nothing between: =IFERROR(A2/B2, "").

Show zero (careful)

=IFERROR(A2/B2, 0) lets SUM and AVERAGE keep working — but a zero looks like a real result. Prefer “” or a dash unless you need maths on it.

Check it worked

Type 0 into B2. The cell shows your replacement, not an error. Type 5 — the real answer comes back.

When NOT to use it

Wrapping everything hides typos too — a misspelled range name gives #NAME? and IFERROR silently blanks it. Use it on the final display formula, not while building.