How to filter out duplicates and keep unique values in Excel?
For a list of data mixed with some duplicates, you may need to filter out the duplicates and keep only the unique values. You can achieve it with the following methods.
Filter out duplicates and keep unique values with Advanced Filter
Filter out duplicates and keep unique values with Kutools for Excel
| Feature | Advanced Filter | Kutools for Excel |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Quickly filtering a list to show one instance of each value using Excel’s built-in tool | Flexibly selecting unique values or keeping the first occurrence of duplicates |
| Unique-value options | Keeps one instance of each value with Unique records only | Supports Unique values only or All unique (Including 1st duplicates) |
| Can exclude all duplicated values | No; duplicate groups still keep one occurrence | Yes; choose Unique values only |
| Can keep first occurrence of duplicates | Yes | Yes |
| Main advantage | Built into Excel and easy for quick deduplication | Provides more control over what counts as unique and supports direct selection |
| Main limitation | Limited flexibility beyond keeping one record from each duplicate group | Requires Kutools for Excel |
| Recommended use | Quick one-time filtering to create a deduplicated list | Users who need flexible unique-value selection and further processing |
Filter out duplicates and keep unique values with Advanced Filter
You can apply the Advanced Filter feature to filter out duplicates in a list and only keep the unique values. Please do as follows.
1. Select the list you need to filter out duplicates, then click Data > Advanced. See screenshot:
2. In the Advanced Filter dialog box, select Filter the list, in-place option in the Action section, check the Unique records only box, and then click the OK button. See screenshot:
Then the duplicates are filtered out and only the unique values are displayed in the list. See screenshot:
Filter out duplicates and keep unique values with Kutools for Excel
The Select Duplicate & Unique Cells utility of Kutools for Excel help you easily select all unique cells at once in a list, and then you can extract these unique cells into a new column with copying and pasting. Or you can select all duplicates and delete them as you need. Please do as follows.
1. Select the list you need to filter out the duplicates, then click Kutools > Select > Select Duplicate & Unique Cells.
2. In the Select Duplicate & Unique Cells dialog box, if you want to keep all unique values including the first duplicates, please check the All unique (Including 1st duplicates) option, and if you just need to keep unique values only (without any duplicates), please choose the Unique values only option, and then click the OK button. See screenshot:
Note: If you want to delete all duplicates and keep unique values in a list, please select the Duplicates (Except 1st one) or All duplicates (Including 1st one) option as you need.
3. Then a dialog box pops up to tell you how many cells will be selected, just click the OK button.
4. Now the unique value cells as you specified above are selected, please press the Ctrl + C keys to copy these cells and paste them to a new column with pressing Ctrl + V keys.
You will get a list contains only the unique values as below screenshot shown.
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Conclusion
Filtering out duplicate values can help you create a cleaner list for reporting, analysis, or further data processing without permanently deleting the original records.
Advanced Filter is a convenient built-in option when you simply want to keep one instance of each value. For more flexible control, Kutools for Excel lets you choose between values that appear only once and unique records that include the first occurrence of duplicates, making it easier to select and process the exact records you need.
Choose Advanced Filter for quick one-time deduplication, or use Kutools when you need more control over which unique values are selected and how they are processed afterward.
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