How to Locate a Cell by String Value in Excel Using Java POI

How can I retrieve the row position of a cell containing a specific string value in an Excel sheet using Java POI?

import org.apache.poi.ss.usermodel.*;
import org.apache.poi.xssf.usermodel.XSSFWorkbook;
import java.io.FileInputStream;
import java.io.IOException;

public class ExcelCellFinder {
    public static void main(String[] args) throws IOException {
        FileInputStream file = new FileInputStream("path/to/excel.xlsx");
        Workbook workbook = new XSSFWorkbook(file);
        Sheet sheet = workbook.getSheetAt(0);
        String searchString = "Your String Here";
        findCellByValue(sheet, searchString);
        workbook.close();
    }

    public static void findCellByValue(Sheet sheet, String value) {
        for (Row row : sheet) {
            for (Cell cell : row) {
                if (cell.getCellType() == CellType.STRING && cell.getStringCellValue().equals(value)) {
                    System.out.println("Found at Row: " + row.getRowNum() + ", Column: " + cell.getColumnIndex());
                    return;
                }
            }
        }
        System.out.println("String not found.");
    }
}

This guide explains how to locate a specific cell containing a string value in an Excel file using Apache POI in Java. You'll learn how to find the cell's row, which can be used further for performing other operations.

// The provided code snippet helps find the cell position
// by checking for string value in each cell.

Causes

• The cell may not exist in the specified sheet if the string value is incorrectly defined.
• The workbook could not be opened due to incorrect file path or format.
• The cell types may not match, leading to missed values.

Solutions

• Ensure the Excel file path is correct and that the file is in a supported format (like .xlsx).
• Check that the string you are searching for exactly matches the content of the cells in terms of case and formatting.
• Use the correct cell type checking (for example checking if it is a string type) during cell iteration.

Mistake: Not checking if the cell exists before accessing its value.

Solution: Always perform a nullity check before accessing cell values.

Mistake: Searching for a string with incorrect case sensitivity.

Solution: Use 'equalsIgnoreCase()' method to ignore case differences.