how to find duplicates in google sheets

To find duplicates in Google Sheets, you can use the built-in Conditional Formatting feature with a custom formula:

1. Select the range of cells where you want to find duplicates.

2. Go to Format > Conditional Formatting.

3. In the Conditional Format Rules panel, under "Format cells if," choose Custom formula is.

4. Enter the formula:
   =COUNTIF(A:A, A1) > 1
   (Replace A:A and A1 with the column and first cell of your selected range.)

5. Choose a formatting style (e.g., a highlight color) to mark duplicates.

6. Click Done.

This will highlight all cells in the selected range that have duplicate values in that column

. If you want to remove duplicates after highlighting them, you can use Google Sheets' Data Cleanup tool:

• Select the column or range.
• Go to Data > Data cleanup > Remove duplicates.
• Confirm to remove duplicate rows, keeping only unique entries

Alternatively, for more advanced duplicate management (like comparing multiple columns, merging duplicates, or automating the process), you can use third- party add-ons such as "Remove Duplicates" from the Google Workspace Marketplace, which offers features beyond basic highlighting and removal without needing formulas or scripts

. In summary, the simplest way to find duplicates is to use Conditional Formatting with the COUNTIF formula, and then optionally remove duplicates using the Data Cleanup feature. For more complex needs, consider specialized add-ons.