Free Google Sheets MCP: No-Code Setup

  • Free forever plan: unlimited connected accounts, up to 30 days of history (15 days in AI chats) and 100 automation credits a month.
  • Sign in with Google: no Cloud project or OAuth client to create, and Porter reaches only the spreadsheets you add.
  • Read and write your sheets: find a spreadsheet, read any tab, write ranges, append rows and add tabs.
  • Safe by default: every write waits for your approval, and overwrites, clears and deletes are flagged as permanent.
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By Kashmala Malik · Last updated November 9, 2026

What is a Google Sheets MCP server?

A Google Sheets MCP server lets an AI assistant like Claude or ChatGPT reach your Google Sheets data through the Model Context Protocol (MCP). You ask in plain language, and the assistant calls the Google Sheets API for spreadsheets, tabs and ranges.

  • Quick setup: paste https://mcp.portermetrics.com/mcp into Claude, ChatGPT or Cursor and sign in with your Porter account. Full steps
  • Works in: Claude, ChatGPT, Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code and Codex
  • Data: any tab of the spreadsheets you add, read or written by range
  • Changes: writes, appended rows and new tabs, each after your approval
  • Price: free plan, paid plans from $15 per account a month
  • Official Google Sheets server: yes, Google’s Sheets MCP server in Developer Preview
Use cases

Google Sheets MCP use cases

Porter Metrics gives Claude, ChatGPT and other AI clients one MCP server for the spreadsheets your team already keeps. Ask about a tab, then update it in the same chat. Range reads come straight from the live sheet.

Reports

Read and analyze

  • Find a spreadsheet: search your added spreadsheets by name, or list them all.
  • See its tabs: every tab with its row and column count, plus named ranges.
  • Read ranges: one range or several, in A1 notation like Leads!A1:F500.
  • Every tab as data: each header becomes a field, numbers become metrics and a Date column filters by date range. The Google Sheets fields list shows how.

Marketing data into Sheets

Sheets next to your marketing data

Research

  • Formulas: SUM, VLOOKUP, IF and QUERY go in as working formulas.

Audits

  • Answers, not exports: weekly summaries, totals, checks and comparisons, straight in the chat.
  • Targets next to actuals: the goals your team typed in a sheet, checked against what the platforms report.

Management

  • New spreadsheets: create one from the chat, and Porter adds it to your connection.
  • New tabs: add a tab to a spreadsheet, named the way you ask.
  • Write a range: put values into a range, replacing what was there.
  • Append rows: add rows after the last row of a log, so history stays put.
  • Clear or delete: clear a range and keep its formatting, or delete a tab you no longer need.
  • Replace or add rows: each run rewrites the tab or adds new rows under the old ones.

Example answer

Demo data, from a fictional spreadsheet. Prompt: “Read the Budget 2026 tab and compare each channel’s Spend so far with its monthly Budget, then show pacing for the month.”

ChannelSpend so farLeadsMonthly budgetPacing
Google Ads$18,420.00612$27,600.0066.7%
Meta Ads$15,980.00544$22,950.0069.6%
TikTok Ads$6,240.00152$4,980.00125.3%
LinkedIn Ads$9,100.0096Not setAdd a budget

Claude reads the tab as it is, flags TikTok Ads at 125% of its budget and LinkedIn Ads with no budget row and writes the pacing column back only after you approve it.

Reference

Google Sheets MCP server reference

One server, every spreadsheet you add: Porter connects Google Sheets to the AI clients, tabs, ranges and workflows marketing teams already use. The same Porter server URL works in Claude, ChatGPT and any MCP client that supports remote servers. Porter reads through Google’s Sheets API, so a range read shows the sheet as it is now.

What Claude can read

Spreadsheets: spreadsheets you added · spreadsheet search by name · spreadsheet details · named ranges

Tabs and ranges: tab list with row and column counts · one range · several ranges · whole tabs

What Claude can write

Spreadsheets and tabs: new spreadsheet · new tab · delete a tab

Values: write a range · append rows · clear a range · in-sheet formulas

How tabs become data

Headers name the fields: a column headed Ad spend becomes the field sheets_source_ad_spend.

Metrics and dimensions: number columns are metrics · text and date columns are dimensions · a Date column lets Claude filter by date range

Sheets has no fixed field list: your header row is the list. Each one is in the full Google Sheets field reference.

Other destinations

The same Google Sheets connection also sends data to Data Studio (formerly Looker Studio), BigQuery and Google Sheets, at no extra cost.

A tab needs a header in its first row, and renaming a header renames its field. Google’s Sheets API usage limits allow 60 read and 60 write requests a minute per user. A request that runs past 180 seconds times out.

Security and trust

Safety and security

Porter’s Google Sheets MCP reaches only the spreadsheets you add and asks before it writes anything. Reading, writing, appending and clearing are separate actions. Overwrites, clears and tab deletes are flagged as permanent. An AI client working through Porter touches only as much of your Drive as the files you picked and the task allow.

Only the spreadsheets you add

You add spreadsheets with Google’s file picker, and Porter writes only to those. A spreadsheet Porter creates for you joins the list on its own. Every other file in your Drive stays out of reach.

The narrowest Google scope

Porter’s Sheets reads use Google’s drive.file scope. Google’s list of Sheets API scopes describes it as access to “only the specific Google Drive files you use with this app”, and recommends it.

Approval before every write

Claude shows you the spreadsheet, the tab, the range and the values first. Porter writes to Google Sheets only after you say yes.

Append instead of overwrite

Logs and trackers grow with new rows under the last one, so last month’s numbers stay where they were. Writing a range replaces what’s in it, so Claude asks before it does.

Clears keep your formatting

Clearing a range removes its values and keeps formatting, data validation and other cell settings. Deleting a tab can’t be undone, so Claude names the tab and asks first.

Formulas stay inside the sheet

Porter writes formulas that work on the spreadsheet itself, like SUM, VLOOKUP, IF and QUERY. Formulas that pull data from outside, like IMPORTRANGE, IMPORTDATA, IMPORTXML, IMPORTHTML, IMPORTFEED and IMAGE, are refused.

Shared sheets are data, not instructions

A shared sheet can hold text someone else typed, and Google’s own guide warns about indirect prompt injection. Every write still waits for your approval, so text in a cell can’t change your sheet on its own. The examples on this page use demo data.

Revoke access anytime

Remove Porter from your Google account’s third-party access and the connection stops working at once. Nothing sits in a token file on someone’s laptop.

Setup

How to set up the Google Sheets MCP server

Porter’s Google Sheets MCP uses one server URL in every AI client, and you sign in with Google once. Claude takes Porter as a plugin or a custom connector. ChatGPT takes it through the Porter Metrics app or a custom MCP server. Either way, you finish by adding the spreadsheets Claude may use.

https://mcp.portermetrics.com/mcp

How to install Google Sheets MCP in Claude

  1. Open claude.ai and go to Settings → Connectors.
  2. Click Add custom connector.
  3. Name it Porter and paste https://mcp.portermetrics.com/mcp.
  4. Click Add, then sign in with your Porter account and approve access.
  5. Connect Google Sheets when Porter asks: sign in with Google.
  6. Ask a Sheets question, like “List the tabs in my Marketing 2026 spreadsheet.”

On Team and Enterprise plans, an owner adds the connector first. Anthropic’s custom connector guide covers the same steps.

Watch the Claude setup demo

How to install Google Sheets MCP in ChatGPT

ChatGPT has two routes to the same data. The Porter Metrics app in ChatGPT’s app directory works on any plan with apps. The Porter MCP gets every new tool the day Porter ships it, on Business, Enterprise and Edu workspaces.

Porter Metrics app: in ChatGPT, open Apps, search “Porter Metrics”, click Connect and sign in with your Porter account, then connect Google Sheets: sign in with Google.

Porter MCP:

  1. Open ChatGPT on the web and go to Plugins.
  2. Click +, then Add custom MCP server.
  3. Name it Porter and paste https://mcp.portermetrics.com/mcp under Connection.
  4. Choose OAuth, tick “I understand and want to continue” and click Create as a plugin.
  5. Sign in with your Porter account.

Pro accounts can add it with read access only, per OpenAI’s custom MCP server guide.

The Google Sheets connector for ChatGPT page covers the ChatGPT side in full.

Watch the ChatGPT setup demo

How to install Google Sheets MCP in Claude Code, Cursor, VS Code and Codex

Pick your coding agent. Each one uses the same server URL and a Google sign-in, so no API key or credentials file sits in a config.

  1. Add Porter’s plugin in Claude Code. It installs the Porter connector and Porter’s skill in one step.
    /plugin marketplace add portermetrics/porter /plugin install porter-metrics@portermetrics
  2. Ask for your data. The first time, your browser opens: sign in with the Google account you use in Porter.
  3. No plugins? Add the server directly instead:
    claude mcp add --transport http porter https://mcp.portermetrics.com/mcp
  4. Check: /mcp shows porter as connected. Ask: “Which Google Sheets accounts can you see?”
  1. Open Cursor Settings → Tools & Integrations and click New MCP Server. Cursor opens mcp.json.
  2. Paste this and save.
    { "mcpServers": { "porter": { "url": "https://mcp.portermetrics.com/mcp" } } }
  3. Click Connect next to porter and sign in with the Google account you use in Porter.
  4. Check: porter shows a green dot in Tools & Integrations. Open an Agent chat. Ask: “Which Google Sheets accounts can you see?”
  1. Open the Command Palette (Ctrl/Cmd+Shift+P) and run MCP: Add Server → HTTP.
  2. Paste https://mcp.portermetrics.com/mcp, name it porter and choose Global. Or add it to .vscode/mcp.json:
    { "servers": { "porter": { "type": "http", "url": "https://mcp.portermetrics.com/mcp" } } }
  3. Allow the sign-in prompt and sign in with the Google account you use in Porter.
  4. Check: open Copilot Chat in Agent mode; Porter’s tools appear under the tools icon. Ask: “Which Google Sheets accounts can you see?”
  1. Add Porter from your terminal.
    codex mcp add porter --url https://mcp.portermetrics.com/mcp
  2. Sign in. Your browser opens: sign in with the Google account you use in Porter.
    codex mcp login porter
  3. Check: codex mcp list shows porter as logged in. Start codex. Ask: “Which Google Sheets accounts can you see?”

The same URL works in Windsurf, Cline, Zed and any client that supports remote MCP servers over HTTP.

Add Porter’s skill

Porter’s skill teaches Claude which Porter tools to call for each Google Sheets task, so answers need fewer retries. In claude.ai, download https://mcp.portermetrics.com/skill.zip and upload it in Settings → Capabilities → Skills. In Claude Code, Porter’s plugin adds it for you, and other agents can run npx skills add portermetrics/porter.

Test the connection

Paste this into a new chat. It only reads data.

Use Porter only. List the tabs in my 'Marketing 2026' spreadsheet with their row counts, then summarize the 'Leads' tab by week for the last 4 weeks. Say so if an account returns no data.

Google’s official Sheets MCP server URL

Google’s own Sheets MCP server URL is:

https://sheetsmcp.googleapis.com/mcp/v1

Google’s guide to the Sheets MCP server covers its setup. It’s in Developer Preview and needs a Google Cloud project with an OAuth client you create. Use Porter’s URL to sign in with Google and get your ad data next to your sheets. Both go into the same MCP Server URL field, so the choice is the server, not the AI client.

Guides and videos

→TutorialGoogle Sheets connector for Claude→TutorialHow to connect Google Sheets to ChatGPT
Prompts

Google Sheets MCP prompts

Copy a prompt into Claude or ChatGPT, then change the dates or thresholds to fit your account. Every change waits for your approval.

Reporting prompts

Weekly summary

Read the ‘Weekly KPIs’ tab and compare this week with last week for every column. Tell me what moved most and why it might have moved.

Targets vs actuals

Put the ‘Targets’ tab next to the ‘Actuals’ tab by month and channel. Show the gap for each, and flag channels more than 10% behind.

Client scorecard

My ‘Clients 2026’ spreadsheet has one tab per client with the same headers. Roll them into one table with the client as a column, worst first.

Data check

Check the ‘Leads’ tab for blank cells, duplicate emails and dates in the wrong format. List the rows to fix before I send the report.

Research and audit prompts

Budget pacing

Read the monthly budgets in my ‘Budgets’ tab and put them next to this month’s Meta Ads and Google Ads spend so far. Show which campaigns will overspend.

KPI tracker

Build one table with revenue from my ‘Sales’ tab and spend from Meta Ads and Google Ads by week. Add cost per sale and ROAS for each week.

Leads next to spend

Count leads by week and source from the ‘Leads’ tab, then put ad spend for the same weeks next to them. Show cost per lead by source.

The research skills blend a tab with your ad accounts, so connect Meta Ads and Google Ads in Porter first.

Management prompts

Weekly log

Add last week’s spend, clicks and leads from Meta Ads and Google Ads as new rows at the bottom of my ‘Weekly log’ tab. Show me the rows before you append them.

New report spreadsheet

Create a spreadsheet called ‘Q4 report’ with one tab per channel: Meta Ads, Google Ads and GA4. Fill each with last month’s numbers by week after I approve.

Fix a range

In the ‘Leads’ tab, find the dates written as text and propose the corrected values. Write them back to the same cells only after I say yes.

Clean before refresh

Clear A2:F500 in the ‘Import’ tab and keep the formatting, then write this week’s numbers into it. Ask me before each step.

Scheduled export

Every Monday, add last week’s Meta Ads and Google Ads spend and clicks by campaign as new rows in my ‘Paid media’ tab.
Who this is for

Who this is for

Marketers who keep their plans, targets and logs in Google Sheets get the most from Porter’s Google Sheets MCP. Marketing managers, agencies, paid media teams and marketing analysts use it to turn a sheet into an answer, a fresh row or a scorecard. Nobody copies numbers by hand anymore.

Marketing managers and in-house teams

  • Plan vs reality: the targets in your sheet checked against what the platforms report.
  • Weekly summary: what moved and why, before the Monday meeting.

Your boss isn’t asking what’s in the sheet. They’re asking whether the plan is on track.

Agencies and freelancers

  • One sheet per client: every client’s tab rolled into one scorecard.
  • Client reports: a fresh spreadsheet with a tab per channel, filled and ready.

Paid media and growth marketers

  • Pacing: monthly budgets next to month-to-date spend on Meta and Google.
  • Cost per lead: the leads log next to spend, by source and week.

When to use Google’s own instead

One Google Workspace account, Sheets only, and you want to set formulas, insert rows or run structural edits from chat. Google’s server is first-party and covers that job well, once you’ve set up its Cloud project.

Comparison

Official Google Sheets MCP vs. Porter

Google’s own Sheets MCP server and Porter’s MCP both connect Google Sheets to Claude and other AI clients. Google Workspace MCP servers gives each Workspace app its own server, Sheets included, in Developer Preview. Porter adds Google sign-in without a Cloud project, your marketing data, scheduled exports and skills.

Google’s server gives your AI deep edits inside one sheet. Porter’s MCP gives it your sheets next to the ads, site and store numbers that fill them.

Both are hosted, use one URL, sign in with Google and read and write cell values. Here is where they part.

PorterGoogle’s official server
Same job, different reach
StatusLiveDeveloper Preview
SetupSign in with Google from the AI clientDeveloper Preview Program membership, a Google Cloud project, the Sheets MCP API and an OAuth client
Claude planAny plan with a custom connector, Free includedClaude Enterprise, Pro, Max or Team
Which filesThe spreadsheets you add with Google’s file pickerThe same files as your Google account
WritesValues, appended rows, in-sheet formulas, new spreadsheets and tabs, after you approveValues, formulas, row and column inserts, structural batch updates
Only one side
Ad platforms, GA4 and Shopify in the same answerYes, from Porter’s 30+ data sources—
Blending sources into one numberYes—
Scheduled exports into a tabYes—
Live dashboards at their own linkYes—
Data Studio and BigQueryYes—
Skills: whole spreadsheet tasks, already writtenYes—

Google’s column follows Google’s Sheets MCP server guide and its tool list (as of November 2026).

Use Google’s own if you work in Sheets only, can run a Cloud project and want formulas, row inserts or structural edits from chat. Everything under Only one side is what happens when the sheet is one tool among several.

If Google’s server asks for an OAuth client

Google’s server signs in through an OAuth client you create yourself. You join the Google Workspace Developer Preview Program, open a Google Cloud project and enable the Sheets MCP API. Then you set up a consent screen and create a client marked “Use this client for an AI-powered agent”. Porter needs none of it: you sign in with Google and pick your files.

And the third-party Google Sheets MCPs?

Plenty of them rank for this search, and they split three ways. The job tells you which one you’re looking at.

  • Action routers: hosted services that run one Sheets action at a time behind their own sign-in and billing.
  • Open-source servers: free to download and yours to host. The Google credentials sit in a local file, and you patch it when the API changes.
  • Analytics connectors: they read a sheet into the chat and write nothing back.

Porter reads, writes and fills your sheets with marketing data from one hosted server, starting on the free plan.

Porter vs other hosted Google Sheets MCPs

Hosted Google Sheets MCPs such as Merge also skip the setup. Porter is built for teams that report on several accounts and channels:

1

Every account at once

One prompt answers for all your Google Sheets accounts and clients, not one account per setup.

2

Google Sheets next to 30+ sources

GA4, Google Tag Manager, Google Ads, Meta Ads and Shopify, blended in one answer.

3

Competitor research

Competitor ads, keywords and search results, next to your own Google Sheets numbers.

4

Reports outside the chat

Live dashboards, scheduled email reports, and the same data in Data Studio, BigQuery and Google Sheets.

5

Changes with approval

Every Google Sheets change is shown first and waits for your yes.

6

Claude and ChatGPT both covered

A remote MCP URL, plus an approved app in ChatGPT’s app directory.

Google Sheets MCP pricing

The Google Sheets MCP is included in every Porter plan, the free-forever plan too. Reporting is billed per connected account.

  • 14-day trial: everything unlimited, no credit card.
  • Free forever: unlimited connected accounts, 30 days of history (15 days in AI chats), 100 automation credits a month.
  • Paid Reporting: from $15 per account a month, or $12.50 billed annually.
  • Unlimited questions: AI chats, queries and dashboards are included. Reads are free; each completed change uses 1 automation credit.
5 accounts
Monthly billing
$40
Annual billing, per month
$33.33
Per account
$8.00

Reporting price for connected accounts, in USD. AI chats, queries and dashboards are unlimited. Annual billing is 10 months for 12.

The more accounts you connect, the lower the price per account. See the full calculator on Porter pricing.

Frequently asked questions

Is there an official Google Sheets MCP?

Yes. Google runs its own Sheets MCP server at https://sheetsmcp.googleapis.com/mcp/v1, in Developer Preview, set up through a Google Cloud project and an OAuth client. Porter's Google Sheets MCP runs at https://mcp.portermetrics.com/mcp with a plain Google sign-in. Porter also adds your ad, GA4 and Shopify data, scheduled exports and skills.

What is the Google Sheets MCP server URL?

Porter's Google Sheets MCP server URL is https://mcp.portermetrics.com/mcp, and Google's own is https://sheetsmcp.googleapis.com/mcp/v1. Paste either one into Claude, ChatGPT or another AI client as a custom connector. The URL decides which server answers, whatever client you use.

Is Google Sheets MCP free?

Porter's Google Sheets MCP is included in every Porter plan, the free-forever plan too. The free plan covers unlimited connected accounts, up to 30 days of history, 15 days in AI chats and 100 automation credits a month. Paid Reporting starts at $12.50 a month per data source account, billed annually.

Can it format cells, add charts or insert rows?

Porter writes values, appends rows, clears ranges and adds spreadsheets and tabs, with in-sheet formulas like SUM or VLOOKUP. You format cells, build charts and insert rows in Google Sheets as usual. Google's own server also lists formula, row insert and structural update tools if you want those from chat.

Is there a Google Sheets MCP on GitHub?

Yes, several open-source Google Sheets MCP servers live on GitHub. You download one, create your own Google credentials and host it on your machine. Porter is hosted instead: you sign in with Google, and Porter keeps the server current when Google changes the API.

Troubleshooting

Why doesn't a new column show up?

Porter builds a tab's fields from its header row when the tab is first pulled in, so a column added later needs the tab pulled in again. Do that in app.portermetrics.com. Meanwhile, ask Claude to read the range directly, which always shows the current columns.

Why don't the numbers match my sheet?

Porter reads values as your sheet displays them, and in report queries dates come back as YYYYMMDD text and numbers with a decimal, like 73.0. A renamed header also renames its field, so an older prompt can miss it. Ask Claude for the current headers and compare by range.

Why can't Claude write to my spreadsheet?

Porter writes only to spreadsheets you added to the connection. Ask Claude to connect Google Sheets, click Add Sheets next to your Google account and pick the spreadsheet in Google's file picker. Then ask again, and approve the write when Claude shows it.

Start free

Connect Google Sheets to Claude or ChatGPT and start with tab summaries, weekly logs and writes that wait for your approval.

Start free: unlimited connected accounts, no credit card. Or take the 14-day trial with everything unlimited.

Start free
  • Marketing managers: the plan in your sheet gets checked against reality every week.
  • Agencies and freelancers: every client's tab answers to one prompt.
  • Paid media and growth marketers: budgets and spend sit in the same table.
  • Marketing analysts: any tab becomes data you can blend, without a CSV.

Automate marketing reporting and analysis with AI like it's 2026.

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