The present disclosure relates to a pre-5th-Generation (5G) or 5G communication system to be provided for supporting higher data rates Beyond 4th-Generation (4G) communication system such as Long Term Evolution (LTE). An apparatus and a method for searching neighboring cells in a wireless communication system are provided. The method includes receiving, from adjacent base stations, a part of a first set of reference signals that are beamformed using different transmission beams arranged in a first order, the part of the first set of the reference signals being received during a first measurement interval in a first time interval, and receiving, from the adjacent base stations, a part of a second set of the reference signals that are beamformed using different transmission beams arranged in a second order, which is different from the first order, the part of the second set of the reference signals being received during a second measurement interval in a second time interval.