Highlight First Occurrence Across Multiple Columns and Rows

[KarenH119]

I am having trouble getting my conditional formatting to work. I am trying to highlight the first occurrence of value in a range of D19:I137.

I tried condition formatting duplicate value and it changed all occurrences to the same color. I also tried entering a formula but still can't get it to work.

I would like the first occurrence of a name to be in red and any duplicates in black.

James	Linda	Peggy	Lisa	Paula
Karen	George	Sara	James	Mike
Mike	James	Tom	Karen	Carrie
Tom	Carrie	Mike	Sam	George

<tbody>
</tbody>

Any suggestions would be great.

 

[Joe4]

When dealing with BOTH rows and columns, I think you need to define what qualifies as "first".
Do you go across rows first, or down columns first?
For example, if there is the same name in B1 and A2, which one is considered to be the "first"?

 

[KarenH119]

D column would be the first and the name would not repeat within the same row.

 

[Marcelo Branco]

D column would be the first and the name would not repeat within the same row.

Maybe...

Select D19:I137 being D19 the active cell
Use this formula in Conditional Formatting
=COUNTIF($D$19:D$137,D19)=1
pick the format you want (Font color --> red)

M.

 

[ProfessorJimJam]

Hi Karen,

you also posted your question in Microsoft Tech Forum Here, I guess there is a solution already provided to you.

 

[Joe4]

you also posted your question in Microsoft Tech Forum Here, I guess there is a solution already provided to you.

While we do not prohibit Cross-Posting on this site, we do ask that you please mention you are doing so and provide links in each of the threads pointing to the other thread (see rule 13 here along with the explanation: Forum Rules). This way, other members can see what has already been done in regards to a question, and do not waste time working on a question that may already be answered.