Find & Replace
Replace text across a whole spreadsheet in one go. Free covers up to 3 rules; Pro adds unlimited rules, advanced patterns, and case transforms.
By Operelio team
On this page7
What it does
Apply one or more find-and-replace rules across your file. Target specific columns or the whole file. Rules run in order, so rule 2 sees the results of rule 1.
Rule options
Each rule has a find value, a replace value, and optional flags:
| Option | Free | Pro | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contains | Yes | Yes | The default. Matches the find text anywhere in a cell. |
| Case sensitive | Yes | Yes | "Westmarch" only matches "Westmarch", not "westmarch" or "WESTMARCH". |
| Whole word | Yes | Yes | "and" matches the word "and" but not "sand" or "android". |
| Exact cell | Yes | Yes | Only replaces if the entire cell matches, not just a substring. |
| Advanced patterns | No | Yes | Match patterns like phone number formats, postcodes, or email shapes. For technical users, this uses standard regular-expression syntax. |
| Case transforms | No | Yes | Convert matched text to uppercase, lowercase, or title case instead of replacing it. |
How to use it
Upload your file
Works with CSV and Excel (.xlsx, .xls).
Add a rule
Type what to find, what to replace it with, and adjust match options if you need them.
Scope the rule
Choose which columns to apply it to. If you do not select any, the rule runs against every column in the file.
Add more rules
Free allows up to 3 rules. Pro, Team, and Agency have no limit.
Preview
See how many cells will change before running.
Run the job
Click Find and replace. Download the updated file.
Advanced patterns (Pro)
Advanced patterns let you match formats that plain text can't describe. Instead of a literal search term, you write a pattern that describes the shape of what you're looking for.
Common examples: \d{3}-\d{4} matches phone number fragments like "555-1234" or "999-5678". \b[\w.]+@[\w.]+\.\w+\b matches anything shaped like an email address. [A-Z]{1,2}\d{1,2} matches UK postcode prefixes like "SW1" or "EC2".
You can also capture parts of the match and reuse them in the replacement. Put parts of the pattern in parentheses, then reference them in Replace with \1, \2, and so on. Find (\d{3})-(\d{4}) with Replace (\1) \2 turns "555-1234" into "(555) 1234".
Patterns are limited to 500 characters to keep them from running slowly. Invalid patterns are skipped with a warning on the results page instead of stopping the job.
Case transforms (Pro)
Instead of replacing text with a static value, you can transform the case of matched text. The three options are: uppercase ("new york" becomes "NEW YORK"), lowercase ("NEW YORK" becomes "new york"), and title case ("new york" becomes "New York").
Title case handles apostrophes correctly: "it's" becomes "It's", not "It'S". To case-transform every cell in a column, turn on Advanced patterns and set Find to `.*` (which matches any non-empty text). Then pick your transform and scope it to just that column.
What the results show
The results page shows: total cells changed, total rows affected, and a breakdown per rule showing the find value, replace value, and number of replacements it made.
Frequently asked questions
Do rules run in order?
Yes. Rule 1 runs first, then rule 2 sees the results of rule 1, and so on. Keep this in mind if rules might overlap.
Is there a limit on pattern length?
Yes. Advanced patterns are limited to 500 characters to prevent slow-running expressions.
What plan do I need?
Free gets up to 3 rules with plain text and all standard match modes. Pro, Team, and Agency add unlimited rules, advanced patterns, and case transforms.
Ready to get started?
Upload a file and run your first transformation. Free, no credit card required.