Google Sheets is part of the Google Docs suite of productivity apps. Google Sheets lets you create and format online spreadsheets, and work on them simultaneously with other people. The Looker Studio Google Sheets connector allows you to access data stored in a Google Sheets worksheet.
In this article:How to connect to Google Sheets
A Google Sheets data source can connect to a single worksheet in a Google Sheet.
To connect:
- Sign in to Looker Studio.
- On the Looker Studio home page, in the top left, click Create and then select Data Source.
- Select the Google Sheets connector.
- Select a Spreadsheet and Worksheet.
You can connect to spreadsheets that you own or that have been shared with you. You can also paste in the URL of a Google Sheet to which you have access.
- Configure any of the data source options (see below).
- In the upper right, click CONNECT.
- The data source fields panel appears.
- The data source is now connected to your data set.
All of the columns you've included in the connection now appear as fields in the data source. See Create and edit data sources to learn more about configuring your data source.
Options
Use first row as headers causes the data source to use the first row in your worksheet as the field names in the data source. If this option is not selected, the field names will use the column index (A, B, C, etc.)
Include hidden and filtered cells lets you include or exclude this data from the data source. The default value is to include them. This option only applies to filters, not to filtered views. Learn more about filters in the Sheets Help Center.
Optional Range lets you define a range of cells in the selected worksheet. Use standard column-row syntax to define the range: e.g., A1:Z26.
Field editing in reports
The Field Editing in Reports data source option allows report editors to change field definitions at the chart level. Editing field definitions in the report makes customizing your reports faster and easier. Learn more about editing fields in reports.
Configure the data source
The data source fields panel is where you configure the data source by renaming fields and adding descriptions, adding calculated fields, and changing data types and aggregations. Learn more about working with data source fields.
Control who sees the data
At the top of the fields panel, you can change the data credentials. Credentials control who can see the data that this data source provides.
OWNER'S CREDENTIALS lets other people view or create reports that use this data without requiring them to have their own access to the dataset.
VIEWER'S CREDENTIALS, on the other hand, requires each user of the data source to provide their own credentials to access the dataset.
Learn more about data credentials.
Create a new report from the data source
- In the upper right, click CREATE REPORT.
- The report editor appears.
- Click ADD TO REPORT.
- This adds the data source to the report.
- You can now create charts and controls that get their data from this data source.
New to Looker Studio?
Take the Create a report tutorial. Or learn more about the report editor.
Notes
- Your data must be in a tabular format. Learn more about how to prepare your Google Sheets to work with Looker Studio.
- The header row must be a single row.
- All cells within a column should be of the same type.
- If you make changes to a sheet after connecting it to a data source, be sure to refresh the data source fields to see those changes.
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To connect to data in Microsoft Excel, save the spreadsheet in Google Sheets first.
Troubleshooting
If you're having trouble connecting to your spreadsheets, consider the following:
- Looker Studio does not support accessing files on Team Drive. Please ensure that your Sheets are stored in standard Drive folders.
- Make sure that you are using the same account for both Looker Studio and Google Drive. If you've accidentally connected Looker Studio to a different Drive account, you can remove that connection, then reconnect using a different account.
- Here are some general tips on troubleshooting issues with Drive.
- If you are a Google Workspace user, your organization must permit access to Drive. Learn how to manage Drive in Google Workspace.