Outgrown Google Sheets? Count the Slow Formulas Before You Decide
Our guide to outgrowing Google Sheets lists six signs that a business needs a real system. Sign 3 is the one people reach for first: the file is slow, scripts time out, a filter takes eight seconds. It is also the easiest one to get wrong, because "the sheet feels slow" is an opinion, and an opinion is a weak reason to start a custom software project. The guide's own advice is to fix the sheet…
Outgrowing Google Sheets: A Guide to Identifying Slow Formulas
The third sign that a business may need a more robust system is when Google Sheets becomes slow to open, run scripts, or filter data. However, this subjective perception can be misleading, as an opinion does not provide a solid basis for deciding to invest in custom software. Before taking any action, it is essential to determine whether the sheet's slowness stems from its design.
To facilitate this assessment, a JavaScript function was created to scan a Google Sheets file for patterns that cause slowness. The scanner identifies five types of formulas that can contribute to a sheet's performance issues.
The first category includes the volatile functions mentioned by Google, such as TODAY(), RAND(), RANDBETWEEN(), and NOW(). These functions are prone to frequent recalculations, which can significantly slow down a sheet's performance. Additionally, open ranges like SUM(A:A) are identified, as they force Google Sheets to read every row in the specified column.
The function also counts the IMPORTRANGE function, which imports data from another file, and the INDIRECT and OFFSET functions, which are not listed as volatile by Google but can still impact performance.
The second category focuses on open ranges, such as A:A or $B:$D, which require Google Sheets to read entire columns or rows. The scanner also looks for cross-file imports using the IMPORTRANGE function and ARRAYFORMULA, which applies a formula to an entire range. These features can add to a sheet's load time and affect its responsiveness.
To ensure accurate results, the scanner first removes text within double quotes and sheet names enclosed in single quotes, preventing false positives caused by literal text or named ranges. The scanFormula() function then processes each formula, counting the occurrences of volatile functions, indirect calls, imports, array formulas, and open ranges. This information is presented in a tab called "Sheet health," providing a clear view of the sheet's potential performance bottlenecks.
By evaluating a Google Sheets file using this scanner, businesses can make informed decisions about whether to invest in optimizing their existing sheets or transitioning to a more powerful solution. The scanner focuses on the underlying structure of the sheet, rather than subjective perceptions of slowness, enabling a more objective assessment of when it is time to outgrow Google Sheets.
Written by urgent.news from Dev.to's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
