How to create a unique alphabetically sorted list from a column in Excel?
In some cases, you need to extract all unique cells from a list, and locate these cells in a new column in alphabetical order. In this article, we will show two methods to achieve it.
Create a unique alphabetically sorted list from a column with array formula
Create a unique alphabetically sorted list from a column with Kutools for Excel
Create a unique alphabetically sorted list from a column with array formula
You can use array formula to create an alphabetically unique list from a column. Please do as follows.
1. Select a blank cell, enter the below formula into it, and then press Ctrl + Shift + Enter keys simultaneously to get the result.
=INDEX($A$2:$A$12,MATCH(0,COUNTIF($A$2:$A$12,"<"&$A$2:$A$12)-SUM(COUNTIF($A$2:$A$12,"="&B$1:B1)),0))
Note: A2:A12 is the original data that you want to extract unique and sort alphabetically, B1 is a helper cell in the column that you want to put the result, and you should put the formula below this cell. You can change the cell references as you need.
Keep selecting the cell, drag its Fill Handle down the column until all unique values are listed out. And you can see all extracted values are sorted alphabetically. See screenshot:
Create a unique alphabetically sorted list from a column with Kutools for Excel
The Select Duplicate & Unique Cells utility of Kutools for Excel can help you extract all unique values from a list easily. After that, you can sort these unique values in alphabetical order manually. Please do as follows.
1. Select the list you want to extract all unique values, and then click Kutools > Select > Select Duplicate & Unique Cells.
2. In the Select Duplicate & Unique Cells dialog box, select the All Unique (Including 1st duplicates) option, and then click the OK button. Then a dialog box pops up to tell you how many cells are selected, please click the OK button.
3. Copy the selected unique cells by pressing Ctrl + C keys simultaneously, and then paste them to a new column. See screenshot:
4. Keep selecting this list, and you can manually sort this new list in alphabetical order by clicking Sort A to Z under Data tab.
If you want to have a free trial (30-day) of this utility, please click to download it, and then go to apply the operation according above steps.
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