Conditional Formatting on Task/Outline Level Formula

Question

I want to format rows based on the Outline Level. e.g. 1 = a darker color, 2=lighter, 3=lighter than 2, etc.

I am using a formula to calculate Outline level:

=VALUE(COUNT(ANCESTORS([Task Name]@row )) + 1)

However conditional formatting is not working. What could allow this to work?

Thanks so much!

Paul Newcome · Answer

Try closing out of the Conditional Formatting tool by clicking on the small "x" in the top right corner. If that doesn't work, check your rules in Grid View. I personally find the Conditional Formatting too in Grid View to be a bit easier to use, but I have also been using that for many years now.

Klein · Answer

I’ve run into this exact limitation before. Unfortunately, Smartsheet’s conditional formatting engine doesn't have a direct way to reference the outline level in the rule builder.

The most reliable way to handle this is to add a helper column for the "Level." You can use a formula like COUNT(ANCESTORS([Task Name]@row )) + 1 to return a number representing the hierarchy level for each row. Once you have that, you can simply set your conditional formatting rules to trigger based on the value in that helper column. It’s a small extra step, but it makes the formatting much easier to manage.

Anjanesh Vaidya · Answer

Hi @amanda2026

Your formula looks correct.

In the conditional formatting rule, make sure you select the 'Outline level' column instead of the Task Name column. Since the formula is in Outline level column, you need to use the same column in the conditional formatting rule.