How to Use the UNIQUE Function in Excel: Your Data Cleaning Secret Weapon
Tired of manually removing duplicates? Here's the one formula you need to know.
Welcome! If you've ever dealt with a large dataset, you know how frustrating it can be to find the unique values within a long list of duplicates. Whether you're analyzing customer names, product codes, or city lists, manually sifting through the data is a waste of time. Luckily, Excel has a powerful and simple function designed for this exact problem: the **UNIQUE function**. It's a game-changer for anyone who works with data.
What the UNIQUE Function Does
The UNIQUE function is a dynamic array function that returns a list of unique values from a range or array. The key word here is "dynamic"—the result automatically "spills" into the adjacent cells, so you don't need to copy and paste the formula. When you use it, you get a clean, de-duplicated list instantly.
Syntax:
=UNIQUE(array, [by_col], [exactly_once])
- `array`: This is the range of cells you want to extract unique values from. This is the only required argument.
- `[by_col]`: (Optional) A boolean value to indicate how to compare the data. `FALSE` or `0` (the default) compares by row. `TRUE` or `1` compares by column.
- `[exactly_once]`: (Optional) A boolean value to determine if you want values that appear exactly once. `FALSE` or `0` (the default) returns all unique values. `TRUE` or `1` returns values that appear only once in the list.
Example: Let's say you have a list of cities in column A from A2 to A20, with many duplicates. To get a unique list of all the cities, you simply enter this formula in an empty cell (e.g., C2):
=UNIQUE(A2:A20)
When you press Enter, Excel will automatically populate the cells below C2 with a clean, alphabetized list of every unique city from your original data. It's that simple! This is an essential skill for anyone who wants to quickly and accurately analyze large datasets without the hassle of manual data cleaning.
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