Conditional formatting depending on value in previous cell

Question

I have a column with following values:

336.1
329.2
420.5
332.1
12.9
639.6
531
461.9
...

I'd like to apply conditional formatting to the whole column with a rule that adds red background if a previous value was bigger and green background if the value was lower.

I'm using new google spreadsheets.

Answer 1

In conditional formating, select "Custom Formula Is", select the Range, and apply the formulas based on the first cell of the Range.

Eg.

Rule 1: Range: A5:A50, Custom Formula, =A5>A4 -> Green Background

Rule 2: Range: A5:A50, Custom Formula, =A5< A4 -> Red Background

For multiple columns separate ranges with commas, Eg. A5:A50,B5:B50,C5,C50.