Using the CHOOSE and AGGREGATE Functions To Apply Conditional Formatting to a Filtered List in Excel By David Hager

The very 1^st article I wrote for my blog was about highlighting values in a filtered list. I decided that it was time to revisit that subject. Specifically, I had written an article for Rob Collie about using the CHOOSE function with conditional formatting (CF) in Excel. It turned out that the article was too complex to be useful.

https://dhexcel1.wordpress.com/2013/12/19/highlighting-top-n-values-in-a-filtered-table-column-using-conditional-formatting/

https://powerpivotpro.com/2012/11/david-hager-on-dynamic-conditional-formatting/

So, I decided to incorporate the use of the CHOOSE function into my original article and give it a friendly user interface. The two user inputs were both created using Data Validation with the List option. They are defined as shown below and pictured in the following figure (showing unfiltered list).

TopN=Sheet1!$B$1

Crit=Sheet1!$B$2

These inputs are used to return values needed by the CF conditions. TopN is selected by the user in cell B1. Cell B2 gives a choice of Large or Small. The following formula converts this information into a number to be used by the CHOOSE function.

CritNumber=IF(Crit=”Large”,1,2)

The CF conditions are made to be applied to column B. When each formula is defined, the active cell needs to be B6.

LargeCondition=OR(Sheet1!B6>=AGGREGATE(14,1,Sheet1!$B$6:$B$31,ROW(INDIRECT(“$1:$”&TopN))))

SmallCondition=OR(Sheet1!B6<=AGGREGATE(15,1,Sheet1!$B$6:$B$31,ROW(INDIRECT(“$1:$”&TopN))))

When combined with the CHOOSE function (the formula used for the CF), they provide a methodology to highlight filtered rows, as shown below (filter set to display values of 50 to 175 in column B).

=CHOOSE(CritNumber,LargeCondition,SmallCondition)

If a way to visualize TopN and BottomN simultaneously was required, a second CF condition can be appled to column B.

=CHOOSE(CritNumber, SmallCondition, LargeCondition)

The following figure shows the result.

This is just a demonstration of the versatility of using CF condtions in filtered lists. The application of this method to many columns can be done, as well as the use of different CF conditions. I might write another article about this subject later, but for now, enjoy! Click the link below to download the working file.

aggregate_filter_choose