# ContentAreaByName()

Returns content from a classic content area.

:::note
This function retrieves classic content areas, which are [no longer supported in Marketing Cloud Engagement](https://help.salesforce.com/s/articleView?id=000381233\&type=1). As a result, this function doesn't retrieve any content and shouldn’t be used. This documentation is retained for historical purposes.

To retrieve content blocks created in Content Builder, use the [ContentBlockByName() function](/docs/marketing/marketing-cloud-ampscript/references/mc-ampscript-content/mc-ampscript-reference-content-block-by-name.md).
:::

## Availability

<table>
  <tr>
    <td>Marketing Cloud Engagement</td>
    <td>✅ Yes</td>
  </tr>
  <tr>
    <td>Marketing Cloud Next</td>
    <td>❌ No</td>
  </tr>
</table>

## Syntax

`ContentAreaByName(contentAreaName, impressionRegionName, boolErrorOnMissingContentArea, errorMessage, statusCode)`

The `ContentAreaByName()` function has five parameters:

- `contentAreaName` (string): Required. The name of the content area to retrieve.
- `impressionRegionName` (string): The name of the impression region to associate with the content area.
- `boolErrorOnMissingContentArea` (boolean): If `true`, the function returns an error if the content area can’t be found. If `false`, the function doesn’t return an error. The default value is `true`.
- `errorMessage` (string): The content to return if an error occurs while retrieving the content area.
- `statusCode` (number): An output variable that contains the exit code of the function. A value of `0` indicates the function found the content area and successfully rendered the content. A value of `-1` indicates either no content or an invalid content area.