Conditional formatting in Excel is a feature that allows you to format cells based on specified criteria. Usually, you will use this feature based on the value of the very cell you’re evaluating.
However, there are instances where you might want to apply conditional formatting to a cell based on the values in another cell or column. In this guide, we’ll provide examples to demonstrate how to achieve this in Excel.
How to Format Cells Based on Another Column in Excel
Suppose you have a sales dataset with the following columns:Product,Sales, andTarget. You want to useconditional formatting in Excelto highlight the products that have achieved or exceeded their sales target.
How to Format an Entire Column Based on a Cell Value in Excel
Let’s say you have a budget spreadsheet with the following columns:Category(column A) andActual Expense(column B). You want to compare the actual expense with a budget limit specified in a specific cell (D2, for example), and highlight the cells in column B that exceed the budget limit. Here’s how:
Whenever you change the value in cellD2(or any cell used in the formula), the formatting will adjust automatically and highlight the categories that exceed the new budget limit.
Master Conditional Formatting in Excel
Conditional formatting in Excel allows you to dynamically change cell appearance based on specified conditions. You can also use this feature to create rules that depend on the values of other cells.
By setting up formulas or referencing cells in the rule, you may format a cell based on the values in a different cell or range of cells. This enables you to visually highlight data patterns and make your spreadsheet more intuitive and insightful.
