How to Turn Your Google Sheet into a Free API in 3 Minutes

By The SheetBridge Team

So, you need a simple backend. A place to store data for your MVP, your mobile app prototype, or your personal project. You're already using Google Sheets to organize everything, and you think, "If only I could just... get this data out as clean JSON."

Well, you can. And it's surprisingly easy. Today, we're going to show you exactly how to turn your humble spreadsheet into a live, functioning API using the power of Google Apps Script. No servers, no credit cards, just you and a few lines of code.

Step 1: Prepare Your Google Sheet

This is the easy part. Create a new sheet. The most important rule is that the first row must be your header row. These headers will become the JSON keys in your API response. Keep them simple and without spaces (e.g., productName, stockCount).

For this guide, let's create a sheet named products with some sample data:

SKU	ProductName	Description	Price	OriginalPrice	Category	StockStatus	Tags
QL-T004	1st Rule of Programming Tee	The golden rule, now on an incredibly soft 100% cotton tee.	₹449.00	₹749.00	T-Shirts	In Stock	code, funny, rule, works
QL-T005	Declare Variables, Not War Tee	This powerful message is printed on our premium black tee.	₹449.00	₹649.00	T-Shirts	In Stock	peace, variables, war, coding
QL-T006	GitHub "The Place I Fork" Tee	Made from a durable, comfortable cotton-poly blend.	₹449.00	₹549.00	T-Shirts	Low Stock	git, fork, code, programming
QL-T007	It Works On My Machine Tee	The perfect gift for anyone who has ever closed a ticket with this phrase.	₹449.00	₹749.00	T-Shirts	In Stock	funny, shrug, devops, bug
QL-H001	The Quantum Hoodie	A heavyweight hoodie for late-night coding sessions. Subtle embroidered	₹899.00	₹1299.00	Hoodies	In Stock	bestseller, winter, cozy, jacket
QL-H002	"Did I Ask For Your Input?" Hoodie	For the developer who prefers to be left alone while in the zone.	₹799.00	₹999.00	Hoodies	In Stock	funny, input, sarcastic, focus
QL-T008	127.0.0.1 "Home" Tee	There's no place like it. This tee is a simple, clever nod to the place every developer knows and loves.	₹449.00	₹599.00	T-Shirts	Low Stock	home, localhost, network, geek

Step 2: Open the Apps Script Editor

This is where the magic lives. In your Google Sheet, go to Extensions > Apps Script. This will open a new tab with a code editor. It might look a little intimidating, but don't worry, we've done the hard work for you.

Step 3: The Magic Script (Get It Here!)

Delete any placeholder code in the editor. Now, you need the script that will read your sheet and serve it as JSON. We've written a clean, reusable script just for this. To get instant access to the code, just pop your email below. We'll also add you to the early-access list for SheetBridge, where we're automating all of this and adding security, analytics, and more.

Step 4: Deploy as a Web App

Now that you've pasted the code, you need to "publish" it to the web.

1. Click the blue "Deploy" button in the top right.
2. Select "New deployment".
3. Click the gear icon next to "Select type" and choose "Web app".
4. In the dialog:
   • For "Execute as", leave it as "Me".
   • For "Who has access", you MUST change it to "Anyone". This makes your API public.
5. Click "Deploy". You'll be asked to authorize the script. This is you giving your script permission to read your sheet. It's safe.

Step 5: Test Your New API!

After deploying, you'll be given a Web app URL. Copy it, then Click on "Run" in the menubar once. You might be asked for permission once again. allow it and if everything runs fine, you are ready!. That's it. That's your API endpoint!

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Believe it or not, you're done. You just built a serverless API. Pretty cool, right? But... now that you have it, you might start asking some important questions like "How do I secure this?" or "How can I let users POST data?"

That's the exact moment you need to stop tinkering and start building.