How to Remove Duplicates in Google Sheets
To remove duplicates in Google Sheets, select your data and go to Data > Data cleanup > Remove duplicates. To keep your original list untouched, use the UNIQUE function instead. Here is how to do both.
Duplicate rows throw off counts and totals in Google Sheets just like anywhere else. There are two clean ways to handle them: delete them in place, or build a fresh duplicate-free list with a formula.
Method 1: Remove duplicates in place
- Select the range that includes your data (with headers).
- Go to Data > Data cleanup > Remove duplicates.
- Tick "Data has header row" if it does, and choose which columns to compare.
- Click Remove duplicates. Sheets tells you how many rows it removed.
Method 2: The UNIQUE function (keeps your original)
To get a deduplicated list without deleting anything, use UNIQUE in an empty cell:
=UNIQUE(A2:A100)The list updates automatically as your source data changes, which makes it ideal for live dashboards. You can also wrap it in SORT to get a clean, ordered list: =SORT(UNIQUE(A2:A100)).
Once your data is clean, summarize it with a pivot table in Google Sheets, or match values across tables with VLOOKUP.
Frequently asked questions
Does Remove duplicates in Google Sheets keep the first row?
Yes, it keeps the first occurrence and removes later matching rows. Sort your data first if you need a specific row to be the one that stays.
How do I highlight duplicates instead of removing them?
Use Format > Conditional formatting with a custom formula like =COUNTIF(A:A, A1)>1. Google Sheets then colors every value that appears more than once.