=if(isna(vlookup(...)),"",if(vlookup(...)="","",vl ookup(...))))

or

=if(iserror(1/len(vlookup(...)),"",vlookup(...))

And xl2007 has added an =iferror(), too.

HJ wrote:

is there a way for a vlookup formula to return a blank cell if it is unable
to find a match in the list?

--

Dave Peterson