How to find duplicate rows in Excel
Quick answer
Upload your spreadsheet, choose which columns define a duplicate (or use the whole row), and the tool lists every duplicate group so you can review and remove them.
- 1Upload your spreadsheet.
- 2Choose the columns that define a duplicate.
- 3Review the duplicate groups found.
- 4Download the cleaned result.
Free, no sign-up, and your file is read on your own device rather than uploaded.
A duplicate row is any record that appears more than once - the same order entered twice, a contact imported from two source lists, or a formula copied down further than it should have been. Left in place, duplicates quietly inflate totals and skew any count or sum run over the data.
This finds them by comparing exactly what you choose - the whole row, or just the columns that should be unique, like an email address or an order number - and groups every duplicate together so you can see the pattern before deciding what to do about it.
Step by step
Choose what defines a duplicate
The whole row, or just specific columns - useful when two rows differ slightly but share the one value that should be unique.
Duplicate FinderReview the duplicate groups
Every set of matching rows is grouped together, so you can see exactly what repeats and how many times.
Duplicate FinderDownload the result
Export the findings, or the data with duplicates removed, depending on what you need next.
Duplicate Finder
Tips
- Matching on the whole row only catches records that are identical in every column - if two entries for the same customer have even one different value, match on the specific column (like an email or ID) that should genuinely be unique instead.
- If duplicates aren't exact - slightly different spelling or formatting - this exact-match finder will not catch them; Fuzzy Duplicate Finder is built for that case specifically.
- Review a sample of the duplicate groups before removing anything in bulk - occasionally two genuinely different records share a coincidental value in the column you chose.
Common problems
Rows that look identical to you were not flagged as duplicates.
Check for a formatting difference in the columns you're matching on - trailing spaces, different capitalisation, or a number stored as text versus a real number will all defeat an exact match. If the values are just spelled differently, Fuzzy Duplicate Finder catches that.
Too many rows are flagged as duplicates.
Match on fewer, more specific columns rather than the whole row - matching on an ID or email column alone is usually more precise than requiring every column to be identical.
Frequently asked questions
- Can I choose which columns define a duplicate?
- Yes - match on the whole row, or on specific columns like an email address or order number, whichever actually defines uniqueness for your data.
- Does this catch near-duplicates, like slightly different spelling?
- No - this finds exact matches. For records that are the same but not spelled identically, use Fuzzy Duplicate Finder instead.
- Can I remove the duplicates, not just find them?
- Yes - download the result with duplicates removed once you have reviewed which rows are genuinely duplicates.
- Does this work on CSV files, or only Excel?
- Both - upload an XLSX, XLS or CSV file directly.
- Is my spreadsheet uploaded to a server?
- No. Everything is read and processed in your browser, on your own device.
Related data tools
- Find Similar RecordsFind the duplicates that an exact match will never catch.
- Data CleanerTidy a spreadsheet, and see exactly what changed, with real before-and-after examples.
- See What Is in My FileSee what is actually in a spreadsheet before you rely on it.
Related articles
- Excel & Data
Find near-duplicate records even when the names differ slightly
Upload your spreadsheet, choose the column that should be unique, and set how close counts as a match. Records like "Jon Smith" and "John Smith" - the same person, entered slightly differently - are grouped as likely duplicates for you to review.
- Excel & Data
How to clean messy Excel data without writing formulas
Upload your spreadsheet and the cleaner trims extra spaces, fixes inconsistent capitalisation, standardises dates and numbers, and drops blank rows - reviewable before you apply anything.
- Excel & Data
What's actually in this spreadsheet? Check before you build on it
Open the Data Profiler - it shows what each column actually contains, how much is missing, and where the likely quality problems are, without changing your file at all.
Ready to do it?
Free, no sign-up, and nothing is uploaded to a server.