After searching long and hard I finally found a way to do it. Makes me wonder why I didn't think of this before. for ( int i = 0; i < GridContact.Rows.Count; i++ ) { if ((int)GridContact.Rows[i].Cells[1].Value == ID ) { GridContact.ClearSelection(); GridContact.Rows[i].Selected = true; } } http://www.c-sharpcorner.com/Forums/Thread/84582/how-to-auto-select-a-newly-added-row-in-the-datagrid.aspx