How to find and replace: A Guide for Word, Excel and Google Docs

By using the find and replace feature, you can quickly search certain words in your document and make changes to them. In the following article we will show you how to use the find and replace tool in Microsoft Word, Excel and Google Docs.

How to use the find and replace feature in Word

You can easily make use of the find and replace tool in Word. Just follow the upcoming steps:

1. First launch Word or Word Online and open a document.
2. Then click on the “Home” tab.
3. Now click on the “Find” on the right side of the bar and select “Replace”. You can also get here by clicking on “Control” and “H” simultaneously.
4. Now you can type in what you want to search and replace.
5. Lastly you only have to tap on “Replace” or “Replace All” and you’re done.

Advanced search options in Word

With the advanced search options you can make further adjustments to your searches:

• Match case: During a regular search Word does not distinguish between upper and lower case. With this search option you can match text in the exact case you used for your search.
• Find whole words only: With this option you can determine that you only want to look for whole words and not part of words
• Use wildcards: If you activate this search tool, you can use a “?” to replace any letter of your search request
• Sounds like: This advanced search option will also find search results that sound similar to your query
• Find all word forms: With this search option you can find related word forms, for example for the search “go”, it will also show you “went” and “gone”
• Match prefix: With this you can search for certain prefixes of words and the results will show you all words with the entered prefix at the beginning of a word
• Match suffix: This is the same function as the “Match prefix” one, only with a suffix at the end of a word
• Ignore punctuation characters: This search option will allow you to search for words or phrases without taking punctuation into account
• Ignore white-space characters: Searching words without taking white-space characters into account

Find and replace tool in Excel

To use the find and replace feature in Excel, the same procedure is needed:

1. At first, you have to start Excel or Excel Online and navigate into a file.
2. After that you open the “Home” tab on the bar above.
3. Then tap on “Find & Select” and choose “Replace”. The keyboard shortcut “Control” and “H” can get you here, too.
4. Next you type in what you search for and with what you want to replace it. You can additionally use search options like selecting sheets for a better result.
5. At last, you click on “Replace” or “Replace All” to get your changes done.

How to find and replace in Google Docs

Like Microsoft Office programs, Google Docs also has a find and replace tool. Here’s how to use it:

1. In the first place you have to open Google Docs and a document.
2. Second navigate onto “Edit” in the toolbar and click on “Find and replace”. The shortcut “Control + H” does work here as well.
3. Now enter the words you are searching for and the replacement. You also do have helpful options you can enable by ticking the boxes.
4. After you find the words, just click on “Replace” or “Replace All” to complete your replacement.