# DLookup in MS Access help
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dlookup-in-ms-access-help/241342
**Category:** Factual Questions
**Created:** [April 22, 2004, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dlookup-in-ms-access-help/241342 "2004-04-22T02:45:41Z")
**Posts on this page:** 2
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@ice1000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ice1000)
#### Post date: [April 22, 2004, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dlookup-in-ms-access-help/241342/1 "2004-04-22T02:45:41Z")
I’m trying to use the Dlookup function to return one particular value in an Access report from a table.
I built a simple database to learn the syntax and I can’t get it to work.
There is one table, “Table1” that looks like:
City,State
Miami, FL
Dallas, TX
And now I have Report1 (based on the “Table1” Table). I placed a text box named City that is based on the same named field in Table1. I placed another text box with the Record Source as =DLookUp(“State”,“Table1”,[City]=[Reports]![Report1]![City])
in the detail field.
According to the Help files, that formula should return the corresponding State from table1 but it doesn’t. It only returns the first State, in my case FL.
I also tried: =DLookUp(“State”,“Table1”,"[City]= " & [Reports]![Report1]![City])
but that just gives me an #error.
What is wrong with the formula? 😕
BTW, I actually have to use a dlookup to return a value from a table totally unrelated table (unlike my example).
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### Author:  [@ice1000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ice1000)
#### Post date: [April 22, 2004, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dlookup-in-ms-access-help/241342/2 "2004-04-22T02:57:37Z")
ok forget it! I just figured it out.
The entire criteria needs to be text.