UNIQUE Function in Excel 365 – Explained with Examples

The UNIQUE function in Excel 365 is a game-changing tool that helps you extract distinct or unique values from a list or range — instantly and dynamically.

It’s part of Excel’s new dynamic array functions, introduced in Excel 365 and Excel for the web.

---

📘 What is the UNIQUE Function?

The UNIQUE function returns a list of unique values from a range, array, or table column. It removes duplicates automatically and updates dynamically if the source data changes.

---

🧪 Syntax

UNIQUE(array, [by_col], [exactly_once])

Argument	Description
array	The range or array to extract unique values from
[by_col]	Optional. Use TRUE for column-wise, FALSE (default) for row-wise
[exactly_once]	Optional. If TRUE, returns values that appear only once

---

✅ Example 1: Basic Unique List

List of names in A2:A10:

Ravi  
Priya  
Ravi  
Neha  
Priya  
Amit

In another cell:

=UNIQUE(A2:A10)

✅ Output:

Ravi  
Priya  
Neha  
Amit

---

✅ Example 2: Unique Values That Appear Only Once

Same list, but only those that appear exactly once:

=UNIQUE(A2:A10,,TRUE)

✅ Output:

Neha  
Amit

---

✅ Example 3: Unique Rows from a Table

If you have multiple columns like Name and Department:

Name	Dept
Ravi	Sales
Neha	HR
Ravi	Sales
Amit	Finance

Use:

=UNIQUE(A2:B5)

✅ Output:

Ravi  Sales  
Neha  HR  
Amit  Finance

---

🔄 Dynamic Behavior

When new values are added to the source range, the UNIQUE function automatically updates its results — no manual refresh needed.

---

🧠 Real-Life Use Cases

• Remove duplicate customer names or email addresses
• Count unique product types in sales data
• Build dynamic dropdown lists with Data Validation
• Filter one-time entries from logs or records

---

🎓 Learn More Excel Magic

Functions like UNIQUE, FILTER, SORT, XLOOKUP, and LAMBDA can transform your workflow.

📘 For step-by-step guidance, real-world dashboards, and hands-on Excel automation:

🔗 Mastering MS Excel – A Comprehensive Training Course

✅ Covers:

• Dynamic Array Functions
• Excel 365 Exclusive Features
• Dashboard Projects
• Form Controls, VBA & More

🎯 Click Here to Enroll Now

---