Try this:

=countif(u2:u2000,"50")+countif(u2:u2000,"<-50")


"Aleks" wrote:

I am trying to count cells in selected range that are above 50 and below -50.
How can I do this without creating another row with absolute values. I
tried this but it doesn't work

=countif(abs(u2:u2000),"50").