Using IF, THEN, AND, OR, and ENDIF in Explore

Learn how IF, THEN, AND, OR, and ENDIF work together in Zendesk Explore so you can build calculated fields that reflect your exact business rules.

Why these operators matter

On their own, Explore’s default metrics and attributes can only take you so far. IF and THEN are the tools that let you embed business rules directly into your reporting. Adding AND and OR means you can handle multiple conditions at once, while ENDIF tells Explore when the logic finishes.

Without these, you would be limited to dragging and dropping whatever attributes and metrics Zendesk makes available. With them, you can translate your exact rules into code and get accurate, reliable results every time.

IF, THEN, and ENDIF

These three always work together:

• IF tells Explore to check whether a condition is true.
• THEN tells Explore what to do if that condition is true.
• ENDIF closes the block and signals that the logic is complete.

IF ([Ticket status] = "Solved")  
THEN [Ticket ID]  
ENDIF  

This simply returns tickets where the status is Solved. You can then apply functions such as COUNT, SUM, or D_COUNT to produce the numbers you need.

AND and OR

You rarely want to check for just one condition. This is where AND and OR come in. If you’re familiar with Zendesk triggers or automations, you can think of them just like the All and Any sections there.

• AND means both conditions must be true (like All in triggers).
• OR means either condition can be true (like Any in triggers).

OR is useful when you want to capture more than one possible scenario in a single formula. For example, you could write a metric that counts tickets where the channel is “Chat” OR “Email”. Both would be included without creating two separate metrics.

Practical examples

Want to practice the syntax first? Use the template snippets in the library: Example Structure of How to Use IF, THEN and ENDIF, Example Structure of How to Use AND, Example Structure of How to Use OR, and Example Structure of How to Use IF, AND/OR, THEN and ELSE.

Here are some examples from the library that show different uses of these operators. For a real-world multi-branch ELIF chain, see How to Combine Multiple Attributes into a Single Reporting Field, which mirrors the logic used in Abandon Location inc. Short-Abandoned.

Short-Abandoned Calls (Metric)

Uses IF and THEN to count calls abandoned in the first 10 seconds, keeping these cases separate from your main abandonment rate.

Abandoned in IVR Calls

Applies IF/THEN logic to single out calls abandoned inside the IVR menu, isolating a problem area that is otherwise hidden in generic abandonment figures.

Creating Your Own Metric with Hard-Coded Filter
Demonstrates the plain IF/THEN/ENDIF structure, counting tickets only when they match a specific value and locking the condition inside the metric itself.

True One-Touch Talk Tickets

Combines IF, THEN, and AND. It requires both the channel and the agent reply count to meet conditions before a ticket qualifies as one-touch.

Abandon Location inc. Short-Abandoned

Chains multiple IF/THEN blocks so each call is categorised according to where it was abandoned. When using more than one IF/THEN block, remember that all subsequent blocks must start with ELIF (Else If) rather than IF.

Step-by-step: writing your own IF/THEN formula

Follow these steps to get started with your own IF/THEN logic:

1. Go to Explore → Report Builder and select the dataset you want to use.
2. Click the Calculator icon and choose Standard calculated metric or Standard calculated attribute.
3. Start with the basic skeleton:

IF ([Attribute] = "Value")  
THEN [Ticket ID]  
ENDIF

4. Highlight and delete [Attribute] and replace it by selecting the field you want using the Select a field drop-down.
5. Replace "Value" with the value you are looking for, such as "Solved". Keep the quotation marks for text-based values. If you’re unsure of the exact values available, add the attribute as a filter in the UI and inspect the options it presents.

IF ([Ticket Status] = "Solved")  
THEN [Ticket ID]  
ENDIF  

6. Add AND or OR to expand conditions. For example:

IF ([Ticket Status] = "Solved"  
AND  
[Ticket Group] = "Support")  
THEN [Ticket ID]  
ENDIF 

7. If you need more than one outcome, add ELIF (Else If) blocks, as used in the Phone Line Name attribute.
8. Validate, save, and test the output against sample data.

Best practice tips

• Start simple and test the basic IF/THEN before adding AND, OR, or multiple conditions.
• Use code snippets from the library to learn the structure quickly and ensure you begin with working syntax.
• Keep indentation clear in longer formulas so the logic is easy to read.
• Remember to wrap up with ENDIF — forgetting it is one of the most common causes of errors.
• Read through and sense-check each variation carefully before relying on the results.

Summary

IF, THEN, AND, OR, and ENDIF are the backbone of calculated fields in Explore. They allow you to tell Explore what to look for and what to do when it is found. Whether you are filtering for one-touch Talk tickets, separating abandon locations, or creating hard-coded filters, these operators let you embed your own rules directly into metrics and attributes. Once you are comfortable combining them, you can design reporting logic that matches your processes with far greater accuracy than Explore offers out of the box—just as you might build formulas in Sheets or Excel.