# Highlight tabular data with conditional formatting
Conditional formatting helps users instantly see what matters. Colors and icons draw attention to critical values like spikes, drops, or outliers. Conditional formatting can be used to emphasize specific records or data points using color, icons, data bars, and other visual elements.
In this article, you learn how to apply single-click conditional formatting and use color scales, classifications, data bars, and action dots in tables. This section also covers customizing rules to use icons or text, hide data, and format row and column headers.
#### Format positive and negative values
Quick Rules let you highlight positive and negative values in a visual with a single click.
Under the **Quick Rule** section, two options are available:
* **Positive** – Highlights values greater than zero to help quickly identify positive performance or growth.
* **Negative** – Highlights values less than zero to easily spot losses or declines.
These options make it easier to visually distinguish positive and negative values without manually configuring conditional formatting rules.
#### Apply color scales
Use color scales to visually enhance data comprehension in tabular reports by applying gradient colors based on value magnitude. This helps quickly identify patterns, trends, and outliers in the data.
In the **Color Scales** section, select a color scale to apply it to the visual.
#### Format data with icons and text
You can apply conditional formatting based on icons/ratings and even deliver ABC segmentations in a single click. Click **Classification**
* **Text:** Text-based classification is commonly used to categorize performance. Select the classification text type.
* **Icons**: Select the icons set to use for conditional formatting.
#### Compare proportions with data bars
Insert colored bars inside a cell to show how a given cell value compares to others, making it easy to spot the highest and lowest values at a glance. Select the measure, then click **Data Bars** and select the bar color.
#### Indicate deviation with action dots and colors
Action dots and colors represent the degree to which the cell values deviate from the desired range/value in the measure. Adding them to the cells helps you assess how the quantities compare to the middle value or any desired value in the measure.
Select the measure and choose **Action Dot** or **Action Color**.
#### Compare performance with bubble charts
Use bubble charts to gauge the magnitude of a measure for quick comparative analysis. Select the measure and choose **Bubble Chart** or **Bubble Only**.
#### Apply conditional formatting to row headers
1. In **Apply to**, select **Row Headers.**
2. Select the row dimension categories to format from the **Target Row** section.
#### Exclude totals and hide values
* Enable **Exclude row grand total** to prevent formatting being applied to the grand total row.
* Uncheck **Show/Hide values** to hide values that meet the specified condition.
#### Add icons and text
To use icons to format cells when they meet the specified condition:
1. Click the button to display icon/text from the **Style** section.
2. Select the position - icons/text can be aligned to the left or right of the value in the cell. You can also choose to display only the icons/text; the value will be hidden.
3. Choose the icon and set the color.
To use text to format cells when they meet the specified condition:
1. Check the **Display text** option.
2. Enter the required text in the textbox.
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