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Clean Up a Messy Spreadsheet With AI

Messy data wastes time. AI can suggest steps and formulas.

Step by step

  1. Describe the mess.
  2. Ask for steps.
  3. Test on a copy.
  4. Check results.
  5. Save the original.

What to expect

Expect specific formulas for trimming spaces, changing case, finding duplicates and splitting names, with an explanation of each.

Mistakes to avoid

Do not edit the original. Work on a copy. Check a sample of rows after each step.

A good next step

Save a clean version with the date in the file name.

A worked example

A volunteer has a list of donors with names in all caps and duplicates. AI gives steps for changing case, trimming spaces and removing duplicates on a copy. The cleaned list has 40 fewer rows.

A prompt you can copy

Type this into ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini

My Google Sheet has names in different cases and duplicate rows. Give me step-by-step ways to clean it.

Good to know. Always work on a copy.

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Common questions

Can AI do it all?

Not automatically in all tools.

Is it safe?

Use sample data.

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