Summarize data from multiple sheets
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Coding level: Beginner
Duration: 5 minutes
Project type: Custom function
Objectives
- Understand what the solution does.
- Understand what the Apps Script services do within the
solution.
- Set up the script.
- Run the script.
About this solution
If you have similarly structured data on multiple sheets in a spreadsheet, such
as customer support metrics for team members, you can use this custom function
to create a summary of each sheet. This solution focuses on customer support
tickets, but you can customize it to fit your needs.

How it works
The custom function, called getSheetsData()
, summarizes data from each sheet
in the spreadsheet based on a sheet's Status column. The script ignores
sheets that shouldn't be included in the aggregation, such as the ReadMe and
Summary sheets.
Apps Script services
This solution uses the following service:
- Spreadsheet service–Gets the sheets
that need to be summarized and counts the number of items that match a
specified string. Then, the script adds the calculated information to a range
relative to where the custom function was called in the spreadsheet.
Prerequisites
To use this sample, you need the following prerequisites:
- A Google Account (Google Workspace accounts might
require administrator approval).
- A web browser with access to the internet.
Set up the script
Click the button below to make a copy of the Summarize spreadsheet data
custom function spreadsheet. The Apps Script project for
this solution is attached to the spreadsheet.
Make a copy
Run the script
- In your copied spreadsheet, go to the Summary sheet.
- Click cell
A4
. The getSheetsData()
function is in this cell.
- Go to one of the owner sheets and update or add data to the sheet. Some
actions you can try include the following:
- Add a new row with sample ticket information.
- In the Status column, change the status of an existing ticket.
- Change the position of the Status column. For example, in the
Owner1 sheet, move the Status column from column C to column D.
- Go to the Summary sheet and review the updated summary table that
getSheetsData()
created from cell A4
. You might need to check the checkbox
in row 10 to refresh the cached results of the custom function.
Google caches custom functions to optimize performance.
- If you added or updated rows, the script updates the ticket and status
counts.
- If you moved the position of the Status column, the script still works
as intended with the new column index.
Review the code
To review the Apps Script code for this solution, click View source code
below:
Modifications
You can edit the custom function as much as you'd like to fit your needs. Below
is an optional addition to manually refresh custom function results.
Refresh cached results
Unlike built-in functions, Google caches custom functions to optimize
performance. This means that if you change something within your custom
function, such as a value that's being calculated, it might not immediately
force an update. To refresh the function result manually, take the following
steps:
- Add a checkbox to an empty cell by clicking Insert
> Checkbox.
- Add the cell that has the checkbox as a parameter of the custom function,
for example,
getSheetsData(B11)
.
- Check or uncheck the checkbox to refresh the custom function results.
Contributors
This sample is maintained by Google with the help of Google Developer Experts.
Next steps
Except as otherwise noted, the content of this page is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License, and code samples are licensed under the Apache 2.0 License. For details, see the Google Developers Site Policies. Java is a registered trademark of Oracle and/or its affiliates.
Last updated 2025-08-28 UTC.
[null,null,["Last updated 2025-08-28 UTC."],[[["\u003cp\u003eThis custom function, \u003ccode\u003egetSheetsData()\u003c/code\u003e, summarizes data from multiple sheets in a spreadsheet, excluding "ReadMe" and "Summary" sheets, based on the "Status" column.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eThe function utilizes the Spreadsheet service to retrieve sheet data, count items matching specific statuses, and display the summarized information in a table.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eUsers need a Google Account and a web browser to use this solution; to set it up, they should make a copy of the provided spreadsheet containing the script.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eTo run the script, users navigate to the "Summary" sheet, observe the function output, modify data in other sheets, and check for updates on the "Summary" sheet, optionally refreshing the cache if necessary.\u003c/p\u003e\n"]]],["The custom function `getSheetsData()` summarizes data from multiple sheets in a spreadsheet, excluding \"ReadMe\" and \"Summary\" sheets. It analyzes each sheet's \"Status\" column, counts tasks based on status (e.g., Complete, In-Progress), and totals all tasks per sheet. The script uses the Spreadsheet service to get sheet data and then adds the calculated information in a summary format to the location in the spreadsheet where the custom function is entered. It is designed for sheets with similarly structured data.\n"],null,["# Summarize data from multiple sheets\n\n**Coding level** : Beginner \n\n**Duration** : 5 minutes \n\n**Project type** : [Custom function](/apps-script/guides/sheets/functions)\n\nObjectives\n----------\n\n- Understand what the solution does.\n- Understand what the Apps Script services do within the solution.\n- Set up the script.\n- Run the script.\n\nAbout this solution\n-------------------\n\nIf you have similarly structured data on multiple sheets in a spreadsheet, such\nas customer support metrics for team members, you can use this custom function\nto create a summary of each sheet. This solution focuses on customer support\ntickets, but you can customize it to fit your needs.\n\n### How it works\n\nThe custom function, called `getSheetsData()`, summarizes data from each sheet\nin the spreadsheet based on a sheet's **Status** column. The script ignores\nsheets that shouldn't be included in the aggregation, such as the **ReadMe** and\n**Summary** sheets.\n\n### Apps Script services\n\nThis solution uses the following service:\n\n- [Spreadsheet service](/apps-script/reference/spreadsheet)--Gets the sheets that need to be summarized and counts the number of items that match a specified string. Then, the script adds the calculated information to a range relative to where the custom function was called in the spreadsheet.\n\nPrerequisites\n-------------\n\nTo use this sample, you need the following prerequisites:\n\n- A Google Account (Google Workspace accounts might require administrator approval).\n- A web browser with access to the internet.\n\nSet up the script\n-----------------\n\nClick the button below to make a copy of the **Summarize spreadsheet data\ncustom function** spreadsheet. The Apps Script project for\nthis solution is attached to the spreadsheet.\n\n[Make a copy](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ZyhrTm9q98oOWzKgD6OVb31Yc38ODEHINOOjgVwQpCg/copy)\n\nRun the script\n--------------\n\n1. In your copied spreadsheet, go to the **Summary** sheet.\n2. Click cell `A4`. The `getSheetsData()` function is in this cell.\n3. Go to one of the owner sheets and update or add data to the sheet. Some actions you can try include the following:\n - Add a new row with sample ticket information.\n - In the **Status** column, change the status of an existing ticket.\n - Change the position of the **Status** column. For example, in the **Owner1** sheet, move the **Status** column from column C to column D.\n4. Go to the **Summary** sheet and review the updated summary table that `getSheetsData()` created from cell `A4`. You might need to check the checkbox in row 10 to [refresh the cached results](#cache) of the custom function. Google caches custom functions to optimize performance.\n - If you added or updated rows, the script updates the ticket and status counts.\n - If you moved the position of the **Status** column, the script still works as intended with the new column index.\n\nReview the code\n---------------\n\nTo review the Apps Script code for this solution, click **View source code**\nbelow: \n\n#### View source code\n\n### Code.gs\n\n\u003cbr /\u003e\n\nsolutions/custom-functions/summarize-sheets-data/Code.js \n[View on GitHub](https://github.com/googleworkspace/apps-script-samples/blob/main/solutions/custom-functions/summarize-sheets-data/Code.js) \n\n```javascript\n// To learn how to use this script, refer to the documentation:\n// https://developers.google.com/apps-script/samples/custom-functions/summarize-sheets-data\n\n/*\nCopyright 2022 Google LLC\n\nLicensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the \"License\");\nyou may not use this file except in compliance with the License.\nYou may obtain a copy of the License at\n\n https://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0\n\nUnless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software\ndistributed under the License is distributed on an \"AS IS\" BASIS,\nWITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.\nSee the License for the specific language governing permissions and\nlimitations under the License.\n*/\n\n/**\n * Gets summary data from other sheets. The sheets you want to summarize must have columns with headers that match the names of the columns this function summarizes data from.\n * \n * @return {string} Summary data from other sheets.\n * @customfunction\n */\n\n// The following sheets are ignored. Add additional constants for other sheets that should be ignored.\nconst READ_ME_SHEET_NAME = \"ReadMe\";\nconst PM_SHEET_NAME = \"Summary\";\n\n/**\n * Reads data ranges for each sheet. Filters and counts based on 'Status' columns. To improve performance, the script uses arrays \n * until all summary data is gathered. Then the script writes the summary array starting at the cell of the custom function.\n */\nfunction getSheetsData() {\n let ss = SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSpreadsheet();\n let sheets = ss.getSheets();\n let outputArr = [];\n\n // For each sheet, summarizes the data and pushes to a temporary array.\n for (let s in sheets) {\n // Gets sheet name.\n let sheetNm = sheets[s].getName();\n // Skips ReadMe and Summary sheets.\n if (sheetNm === READ_ME_SHEET_NAME || sheetNm === PM_SHEET_NAME) { continue; }\n // Gets sheets data.\n let values = sheets[s].getDataRange().getValues();\n // Gets the first row of the sheet which is the header row.\n let headerRowValues = values[0];\n // Finds the columns with the heading names 'Owner Name' and 'Status' and gets the index value of each.\n // Using 'indexOf()' to get the position of each column prevents the script from breaking if the columns change positions in a sheet.\n let columnOwner = headerRowValues.indexOf(\"Owner Name\");\n let columnStatus = headerRowValues.indexOf(\"Status\");\n // Removes header row.\n values.splice(0,1);\n // Gets the 'Owner Name' column value by retrieving the first data row in the array.\n let owner = values[0][columnOwner];\n // Counts the total number of tasks.\n let taskCnt = values.length;\n // Counts the number of tasks that have the 'Complete' status.\n // If the options you want to count in your spreadsheet differ, update the strings below to match the text of each option.\n // To add more options, copy the line below and update the string to the new text.\n let completeCnt = filterByPosition(values,'Complete', columnStatus).length;\n // Counts the number of tasks that have the 'In-Progress' status.\n let inProgressCnt = filterByPosition(values,'In-Progress', columnStatus).length;\n // Counts the number of tasks that have the 'Scheduled' status.\n let scheduledCnt = filterByPosition(values,'Scheduled', columnStatus).length;\n // Counts the number of tasks that have the 'Overdue' status.\n let overdueCnt = filterByPosition(values,'Overdue', columnStatus).length;\n // Builds the output array.\n outputArr.push([owner,taskCnt,completeCnt,inProgressCnt,scheduledCnt,overdueCnt,sheetNm]);\n }\n // Writes the output array.\n return outputArr;\n}\n\n/**\n * Below is a helper function that filters a 2-dimenstional array.\n */\nfunction filterByPosition(array, find, position) {\n return array.filter(innerArray =\u003e innerArray[position] === find);\n}\n```\n\n\u003cbr /\u003e\n\n\u003cbr /\u003e\n\nModifications\n-------------\n\nYou can edit the custom function as much as you'd like to fit your needs. Below\nis an optional addition to manually refresh custom function results. \n\n#### Refresh cached results\n\n\nUnlike built-in functions, Google caches custom functions to optimize\nperformance. This means that if you change something within your custom\nfunction, such as a value that's being calculated, it might not immediately\nforce an update. To refresh the function result manually, take the following\nsteps:\n\n1. Add a checkbox to an empty cell by clicking **Insert** \\\u003e **Checkbox**.\n2. Add the cell that has the checkbox as a parameter of the custom function, for example, `getSheetsData(B11)`.\n3. Check or uncheck the checkbox to refresh the custom function results.\n\nContributors\n------------\n\nThis sample is maintained by Google with the help of Google Developer Experts.\n\nNext steps\n----------\n\n- [Custom functions in Google Sheets](/apps-script/guides/sheets/functions)\n- [Extending Google Sheets](/apps-script/guides/sheets)"]]