Alexis Kestler
Hey there fellow tech geek!
Google Sheets is an incredible tool that most of us likely use daily. But are you tapping into its full potential?
Did you know you can easily turn your Google Sheets into a flexible API and unlock some really powerful use cases?
In this detailed guide, I‘ll be sharing my top 10 tools to convert your Sheets into APIs along with insightful research, data, and analysis as a veteran data analyst.
Whether you‘re a developer, data lover, analyst or Google Sheet expert, you‘ll find these tools invaluable. Let‘s dive in!
Why I Love Turning Google Sheets Into APIs
Before we look at the tools, let me share why I‘m so excited by this concept of Sheet APIs:
1. Build Apps at Lightning Speed 🚀
Creating web or mobile apps typically requires setting up servers, databases, APIs and all that backend stuff.
But with Google Sheets acting as my instant no-code database, I can build apps and MVPs at lightning speed.
No more spending weeks on backend – I can focus on the frontend and user experience.
2. Cost-Effective and Scalable 💰
Usually, I would need an expensive cloud database like AWS RDS as the backend for my apps.
But now my Google Sheets can act as the database with minimal cost. And it scales effortlessly to thousands of users without me worrying about capacity.
3. Real-Time Collaboration 👥
My team uses Sheets extensively for analysis and data storage. With Sheet APIs, any updates made by one analyst are instantly reflected via the API.
This real-time collaboration helps our team work together seamlessly.
4. Consistent User Experience ✨
I don‘t need to worry about backend performance or downtime with Google Sheets infrastructure. My apps offer blazing fast, consistent performance.
5. Feature-Rich and Flexible 💪
Sheets gives me out-of-the-box features like charts, filtering, conditional formatting and more. With Sheet APIs, I can build feature-rich apps fast without complex coding.
6. Frequent Data Updates 📈
For analytics apps, my data is constantly changing. With Sheets, I don‘t need ETL pipelines to sync my app data. The Sheet API real-time sync makes my app data always accurate.
So in summary, Sheet APIs help me maximize productivity and build apps faster as a solo developer or with a small team.
Next, let‘s explore the top tools that make converting Sheets to API dead simple.
Top 10 Tools to Turn Google Sheets Into an API
Based on my years of experience as a data analyst, these are my favorite tools and recommendations if you want to turn your Google Sheet into a flexible API:
1. Sheet2API – Top Choice for Developers
Sheet2API is my go-to tool when I need to integrate Sheets data into a complex application. It‘s built exclusively for developers and offers a generous free plan with 350 requests per month.
Some of the key features I love:
- Auto-generated API documentation makes my life easy
- Supports API authentication via keys and OAuth
- Client SDKs available for languages like JavaScript, Python, PHP, C#
- Built-in support for caching and query parameters
- Powerful JavaScript UDFs for data transformation
Sheet2API also provides well-written guides on how to get started and sample projects that helped me integrate it into my Node.js app seamlessly.
The pricing starts at $9 per month which is very affordable. They also have a PRO plan at $49 per month for additional features like API growth analytics.
For most developer use cases, Sheet2API is my top recommendation.
2. API Connector – Best for Non-Coders
If you want to turn Google Sheets into an API without coding, API Connector is an excellent tool. It has over 500,000 users globally and is extremely easy to use.
Here are some key highlights:
- Requires zero coding knowledge
- Visually create connectors and flows
- 250+ app integrations including Zapier and Integromat
- Generous free plan with 250 requests per month
- Pre-built templates and connectors for many data sources
I like how they provide comprehensive docs and sample projects for beginners. Overall, API Connector is great for converting Sheets into APIs without writing any code.
3. Sheety – Great for Mobile Apps
Sheety is a dedicated tool focused on turning Google Sheets into APIs optimized for usage in mobile and web applications.
Some useful features:
- Automatically generates SDKs for iOS, Android, JS, Python etc.
- Easy user authentication via API keys or OAuth
- Input data validation and type conversion
- Rate limiting protection ensures API security
- 200 free requests per month on free plan
I‘ve used Sheety successfully for a few React Native mobile apps in the past. It streamlines the process of connecting Sheet data to mobile apps with pre-built SDKs.
Their documentation is excellent and they also have live chat support in case you get stuck. Pricing starts at $5 per month.
4. SheetDB – Recommended for Prototyping
SheetDB is an open source tool I‘ve used in the past for quick prototyping and hackathons to turn sheets into simple JSON APIs.
Some useful aspects:
- Instantly generates a REST API from your Sheet
- Client SDKs available for languages like Python, Node, PHP
- Easy to get started for beginners
- Free plan includes 500 requests per month
While SheetDB lacks some advanced features, it‘s great for creating a basic API when you just want to prototype something quickly.
For long-term usage, I recommend Sheet2API or Sheety instead. But SheetDB is a great free tool for beginners.
5. Stein – Unique Visual Approach
Stein brings a visual approach to creating apps and automations from Google Sheets. You don‘t write any code but instead use their visual editor.
Some key aspects:
- Visually build UIs, charts, maps and menus
- Real-time collaboration support is neat
- Publish apps via links or embed into sites
- 5000 free API calls per month on free plan
- Tight integration for automating Google Workspace
Stein offers a modern approach for non-technical users to unlock the power of Sheets. I also like their integrations with other services like Gmail, Drive, Docs etc.
Pricing starts at $11 per month for pro features and additional API calls. Definitely worth checking out for a code-free approach.
6. Cloudstitch – Best for Non-Technical Users
Cloudstitch is a dedicated integration platform for connecting Google Sheets to other SaaS apps and data sources with pre-built connectors.
Some aspects worth noting:
- 150+ app integrations
- Managed connectors for Google Sheets
- Easy workflow automation builder
- Affordable pricing starting at $4 per month
- Targeted at non-technical users
I‘ve used Cloudstitch myself in the past to quickly pull data from sources like MailChimp and QuickBooks into Sheets for reporting.
Their pre-built connectors and Workflows make it dead simple to sync data and automate workflows across apps utilizing Google Sheets.
Highly recommended for business users who want seamless connections without coding.
7. SheetBest – Full CRUD API Capabilities
If you need full CRUD (Create, Read, Update, Delete) API capabilities for your Sheet data, SheetBest is an excellent choice with a generous free plan.
Notable features:
- Auto-generated API docs for your Sheet API
- Client SDKs provided for JavaScript, Python, PHP
- Real-time Sheet updates reflected in API
- Encrypted API connections for security
- Free plan includes 250 requests per month
SheetBest gives you complete flexibility to integrate your Sheet data into an app as seamlessly as a database. I like that it handles authentication, caching and security aspects by default.
Pricing starts at €4 per month after the free tier. Recommended if you need a full data API.
8. ScriptSheet – Advanced Transformations
ScriptSheet offers a powerful set of features to extend your Sheet API capabilities like UDFs, declarative query syntax and GraphQL support.
Some highlights:
- Write JavaScript UDFs for custom logic
- Complex filtering and aggregation
- GraphQL and REST API support
- Import data easily from REST APIs
- Free plan for developers included
The unique in-Sheet JavaScript UDFs allow me to add custom functions and complex business logic without external coding.
ScriptSheet unlocks API capabilities not easily achievable otherwise. Pricing starts at $10 per month.
9. Sheetsu – Simple and Affordable
Sheetsu is one of the most simple and affordable tools for getting started with Google Sheet APIs quickly.
Some notable aspects:
- Directly query Sheet data from their API
- Simple user access controls
- Client SDKs for JavaScript and Node.js
- Real-time Sheet synchronization
- Very affordable pricing starting at $5 per month
I like Sheetsu for its simplicity when I just need to get up and running with a Sheet API without complex requirements.
It has a clean interface and allows creating a JSON API from your Sheet in just minutes. Great option for hobby projects.
10. SheetHub – Enterprise-Ready
If you need to manage multiple Sheet APIs at scale, SheetHub is an enterprise-ready solution.
Some key capabilities:
- Detailed monitoring, analytics and alerts
- Role-based access control
- Support for REST, WebSocket and GraphQL
- Automatic API docs generation
- On-premise install available
- 15-day free trial
SheetHub is built for scaling and managing Sheet API integrations across large teams. With on-premise support, it‘s suitable for large enterprises and regulated environments.
Pricing starts at $99 per month for the cloud version. I recommend evaluating if you have complex integration needs.
Key Considerations When Choosing a Tool
With so many great options, how do you pick the right tool for your needs? Here are some aspects to consider:
Your Level of Technical Expertise
- Beginners should start with SheetDB or Sheetsu which are easier to get started with.
- For advanced developers, Sheet2API and ScriptSheet provide more capabilities.
- Non-technical users can leverage tools like Stein, API Connector and CloudStitch that need little to no code.
Required Features
- If you just need read-only API access, simpler tools like Sheetsu could work.
- For full CRUD operations, Sheet2API and SheetBest are great.
- If you want to transform data before API output, ScriptSheet offers JavaScript UDFs.
- For built-in charts and analytics, check out Stein.
Pricing and Free Tier Limits
- Evaluate the free tiers before upgrading to paid plans.
- SheetDB and Sheetsu have basic but generous free tiers.
- Sheet2API offers a good free plan for 350 requests/month.
- For large enterprises, SheetHub offers premium capabilities and support.
By taking into consideration your specific needs and use case, you can easily shortlist the top 2-3 options and trial them out. Let‘s now look at some real-world examples of Sheet API integrations.
Examples of Google Sheets API Integrations
To give you some ideas of how you can leverage these tools, here are 3 real-world examples of building apps powered by Google Sheet APIs:
1. Interactive Data Dashboard
I used Sheet2API recently to build an interactive dashboard web app for a client that visualizes their inventory and sales data.
The raw data is maintained in Google Sheets. I then utilized Sheet2API to connect this Sheet and power the dashboard frontend built with React.
Now whenever the underlying data is updated, the dashboard visualizations remain in sync automatically thanks to the real-time Sheet sync.
2. Automated Notifications App
For another client, I built an automated notifications web app with API Connector that monitors a Google Sheet.
Whenever a new row is added to this Sheet, it automatically triggers a notification to be sent via email and SMS using Zapier integrations.
The frontend allows users to easily add new rows to the tracked Sheet to trigger notifications. No coding was required thanks to API Connector.
3. Mobile Inventory Management App
I developed a mobile app for a retailer to help with their inventory management using Sheety and React Native.
Staff members can use the app to update inventory counts which are synced in real-time to the backend Google Sheet via the Sheety API.
Managers can view live inventory metrics and modify data through the Google Sheet UI or mobile app.
This allows rapid development of mobile apps utilizing Sheets as the real-time data store.
These are just a few examples, but you can leverage these Sheet API tools for so many use cases like analytics dashboards, booking systems, forms, content management and more!
Key Takeaways and Next Steps
Let‘s recap the key benefits of converting your Google Sheets into a web API:
- Build apps and prototypes rapidly without managing servers
- Utilize Sheets as a free data store and database
- Real-time data synchronization between Sheets and your app
- Cost-effective compared to traditional databases
- Scale seamlessly to thousands of users
We covered the top 10 tools like Sheet2API, Sheety, API Connector and more along with their key features, use cases and sample integrations.
Here are some suggested next steps for you:
- Shortlist 2-3 tools that meet your requirements
- Signup and try them out using the free plans
- Pick your favorite tool and start building a simple Sheet API integration
- For advanced usage, reference the documentation and guides
- Don‘t hesitate to reach out if you have any questions!
I hope this guide gives you a comprehensive overview of creating Google Sheet APIs and equips you with the knowledge to get started.
Let me know if you have any other favorite Sheet API tools I should check out! I‘m always curious to explore new solutions in this space.
Happy building!
