Google Sheets

Sync a Google Sheet into your warehouse, and every tab becomes a table you can query, chart and ask about. The copy refreshes on a schedule, so the numbers in Orcabase follow the sheet.

Before you start

• The Google Sheet, and permission to share it.
• A DuckDB warehouse in Orcabase for the data to land in. See Hosted by Orcabase.
• The Admin role in your organization.

Sync a spreadsheet

1. Pick Google Sheet

   Go to Sync data→ then Add source and pick Google Sheet, under Built into Orcabase.

2. Share the sheet with Orcabase

   The form shows an email address with a copy button. In Google Sheets, click Share and add that address as a Viewer. Orcabase reads the sheet as that address; it never needs to edit.

3. Paste the link

   Copy the spreadsheet’s link from your browser (it starts with https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/) into Spreadsheet link. Pick your warehouse under Sync into, then click Connect.

4. Choose tabs and a schedule

   Orcabase lists the tabs it found. Tick the ones to sync, and tick Also sync tabs added later if you want new tabs picked up automatically. Set the Schema (for example sheets) and how often to sync, then click Start syncing.

How tabs become tables

Column names keep their spaces and capitals, so in SQL put names like that in double quotes:

SELECT "Order Date", SUM("Amount") AS revenue
FROM sheets.orders
GROUP BY "Order Date"

Tips for sheets that sync well

• Put the column names in row 1, with the data right under them. Titles or notes above the header become data.
• Keep one kind of value per column: a column of amounts shouldn’t have “n/a” in it.
• Give each dataset its own tab rather than stacking two tables in one.
• Use short, plain column names, like order_date, so SQL doesn’t need quotes.