Google Sheets API Essential Guide

What type of API does Google Sheets provide?

Google Sheets uses a RESTful API. The Google Sheets API is a RESTful interface that allows reading and modifying spreadsheet data. It uses standard HTTP methods and follows REST principles such as statelessness and client-server architecture.

While the primary Google Sheets API is RESTful, API Connector, a third-party tool, supports using GraphQL queries with Google Sheets. This allows for more flexible data fetching in some cases.

Does the Google Sheets API have webhooks?

The Google Sheets API does not have built-in webhooks. However, you can implement webhook-like functionality using Google Apps Script:

1. Create a Google Apps Script bound to your Google Sheet.
2. Use the onEdit or onChange trigger to detect changes in the sheet.
3. Send HTTP POST requests to your desired webhook URL when changes occur.

Example implementation:

function onEdit(e) {
  if(e.changeType == "EDIT" || e.changeType == "INSERT_ROW") {
    var sheet = e.source.getActiveSheet();
    var row = e.range.getRow();
    var column = e.range.getColumn();
    
    var data = sheet.getRange(row, 1, 1, sheet.getLastColumn()).getValues()[1];
    
    var payload = {
      'sheet': sheet.getName(),
      'row': row,
      'column': column,
      'data': data
    };
    
    var options = {
      'method': 'post',
      'contentType': 'application/json',
      'payload': JSON.stringify(payload)
    };
    UrlFetchApp.fetch('YOUR_WEBHOOK_URL', options);
  }
}

Events you can subscribe to:

• EDIT: Cell editing
• INSERT_ROW: New row insertion
• INSERT_COLUMN: New column insertion
• REMOVE_ROW: Row removal
• REMOVE_COLUMN: Column removal
• INSERT_GRID: New grid insertion
• REMOVE_GRID: Grid removal
• FORMAT: Formatting changes
• OTHER: Other changes

Best practices:

1. Be selective about which changes trigger the webhook.
2. Consider rate limiting or batching updates.
3. Use appropriate authentication for your webhook endpoint.
4. Handle errors gracefully, especially network-related issues.

This approach provides webhook-like functionality for Google Sheets using Google's built-in scripting capabilities.

Rate Limits and other limitations

Here are the key points about the API rate limits for the Google Sheets API:

Quota Limits

• There is a read request limit of 300 per minute per project
• There is a write request limit of 300 per minute per project
• There is a read request limit of 60 per minute per user per project
• There is a write request limit of 60 per minute per user per project

Key Considerations

• The quotas are refilled every minute
• Exceeding the quota results in a 429 "Too Many Requests" error
• There is no limit on the total number of requests per day, as long as you stay within the per-minute quotas
• All requests are applied atomically - if any part fails, the entire update fails

Best Practices

• Use an exponential backoff algorithm to retry requests that fail due to rate limiting
• Consider using batch requests to reduce the number of API calls needed
• Look into using push notifications from the Drive API instead of frequent polling, if applicable

Additional Notes

• The API is free to use - exceeding quotas does not incur charges
• You can request a quota increase, but approval is not guaranteed and may take time
• Using multiple service accounts may not help, as Google seems to rate limit by IP address as well

The key is to stay within the per-minute quotas by optimizing requests and implementing proper retry logic. For high-volume use cases, requesting a quota increase may be necessary.

Latest API Version

The most recent version of the Google Sheets API is v4. Here are the key points:

Current Version

• Google Sheets API v4 is the current and recommended version.

Release History

• Google Sheets API v4 was released on June 15, 2016.
• Google Sheets API v3 was turned down on August 2, 2021.

Key Differences from v3

• v4 is JSON-based, has an easier-to-use interface, and adds substantial new functionality compared to v3.
• v4 operates on individual files and can use more granular authorization scopes.
• v4 provides access to features like filters, conditional formatting, charts and pivot tables.

Migration

• Google provided a migration guide to help developers transition from v3 to v4.
• The v4 API uses different authorization scopes and request/response formats compared to v3.

Best Practices

• Use the v4 API for all new development.
• Migrate existing applications from v3 to v4 to ensure continued functionality.
• Utilize client libraries when possible to handle authentication and request processing.

In summary, Google Sheets API v4 is the current version that should be used for all Google Sheets API development going forward. The previous v3 version has been deprecated and turned down.

How to get a Google Sheets developer account and API Keys?

To get a developer account for Google Sheets and create an API integration, follow these steps:

1. Create a Google Developer Account

• Create a Google account at https://www.google.com
• Go to https://developers.google.com and sign in

2. Create a Google Developer Project

• Navigate to https://console.developers.google.com/
• Click "CREATE PROJECT" or select "New Project" from the dropdown menu
• Name your project and click "Create"

3. Enable the Google Sheets API

• In your project dashboard, click "+ Enable APIs and Services"
• Search for "Google Sheets API" and select it
• Click "Enable"

4. Create Credentials

• Click "Create Credentials"
• Select "Google Sheets API" from the dropdown menu
• Choose "Other UI" for where you'll be calling the API from
• Select "Application Data" for the type of data you'll be accessing
• Click "What credentials do I need?"

5. Set Up a Service Account

• Name your service account
• Set the role to "Project > Editor"
• Select "JSON" as the key type
• Click "Continue" to download the JSON file containing your credentials

6. Configure OAuth Consent (if necessary)

• If you need user data access, configure the OAuth consent screen
• Choose the appropriate scopes for your application

Keep the downloaded JSON file safe, as you'll need it to authenticate your requests to the API. The service account will have an associated email address, which you'll use to share Google Sheets documents with the service account.

What can you do with the Google Sheets API?

Here's a list of data models you can interact with using the Google Sheets API, along with what is possible for each:

Spreadsheet

• Create new spreadsheets
• Read and modify spreadsheet metadata (title, locale, time zone, etc.)
• Manage spreadsheet permissions and sharing settings
• Retrieve a list of sheets within the spreadsheet
• Add, delete, or duplicate sheets
• Manage connected sheets (linking to external data sources)

Sheet

• Create, delete, and rename sheets within a spreadsheet
• Read and modify sheet properties (title, grid size, tab color, etc.)
• Copy sheets between spreadsheets
• Reorder sheets within a spreadsheet
• Hide or unhide sheets
• Protect or unprotect sheets

Cell

• Read and write cell values
• Update cell formatting (font, color, borders, etc.)
• Apply data validation rules
• Set number formats for cells
• Merge or unmerge cells
• Insert, delete, or clear cell ranges

Range

• Read and write values for a range of cells
• Apply formatting to a range of cells
• Create named ranges
• Apply conditional formatting rules
• Set data validation rules for ranges
• Sort and filter data within ranges

Row/Column

• Insert or delete rows and columns
• Freeze or unfreeze rows and columns
• Adjust row heights and column widths
• Hide or unhide rows and columns
• Group or ungroup rows and columns

Chart

• Create, read, update, and delete charts
• Modify chart properties (title, legend, axis settings, etc.)
• Change chart types
• Update chart data ranges

Pivot Table

• Create, read, update, and delete pivot tables
• Modify pivot table settings (source data, rows, columns, values, filters)
• Refresh pivot table data

Filter

• Create, read, update, and delete filter views
• Set filter criteria for columns
• Apply basic and advanced filters

Developer Metadata

• Add, read, update, and delete custom metadata for various elements (spreadsheet, sheet, row, column)
• Search for elements with specific metadata

Formulas

• Read and write formulas in cells
• Recalculate formulas
• Retrieve formula evaluation results

Conditional Formatting

• Create, read, update, and delete conditional formatting rules
• Apply various types of conditional formatting (color scales, data bars, icon sets, etc.)

Protected Ranges

• Create, read, update, and delete protected ranges
• Manage permissions for protected ranges

Data Validation

• Set up data validation rules for cells or ranges
• Modify existing data validation rules

Banding

• Add, modify, or remove alternating row/column color banding

Images

• Insert, update, or delete images in a spreadsheet

Comments and Notes

• Add, read, update, and delete comments and notes
• Manage comment permissions and resolve/reopen comments

Version History

• Retrieve version history of a spreadsheet
• Restore previous versions of a spreadsheet

This list covers the main data models and operations possible with the Google Sheets API. Each of these models allows for various interactions and modifications, enabling developers to create powerful integrations and automations with Google Sheets.