Looking for a way to send the data from your WordPress form to Google Sheets? This step-by-step guide will show you how!
We’ve all been there before.
You create a new Google Sheet for our data. This will simplify everything for you and have everything in one place. But then you look at the mountain of data to enter and realize it won’t be so simple (and will probably take weeks).
Surely there’s a better way, you think.
And there is.
This post will show you exactly how to send your WordPress form data to Google Sheets with Formidable Forms. And it’ll take a fraction of the time as before.
So, let’s get started.
? Looking for the best Google Sheets plugins? Check here: 7 WordPress Google Sheets Plugins [Sheets Made Easy!]
Why connect WordPress to Google Sheets
Google Sheets is the top alternative to Microsoft Excel sheets.
In fact, more people use Google Sheets than Excel. And that’s because of its flexibility. Users love features like autosaving, sharing options, collaboration tools, plus more.
It's no secret people love Google Sheets. The main challenge is importing data from all the various sources. Copying and pasting data is cumbersome and time consuming. Plus, you need to do it manually. Well - not anymore, as you'll soon see! ?
If you are a business owner or marketer running a WordPress site, you know the power of data. Of course, the number 1 way of collecting data? Online forms.
It's not too hard to imagine how you could benefit from sending your form data to Google Sheets. What if you could view your form data, like contact information, feedback surveys, or purchase information directly in Google Sheets?
Here are a few things you could do:
- Easy filtering: No one wants to scroll through row after row of information. So, Google Sheets makes it easy to filter and search for the information you need.
- Team sharing: If you manage a large team, sending and receiving separate files can confuse people. But with Google Sheets, you have one place where everyone can collaborate.
- Autosaving: Remember when you’d forget to save and lose everything when the power went out? Not anymore. Google Sheets saves every edit you make as soon as you make it.
Imagine all those abilities, but you don’t have to enter data yourself! Doesn’t that sound nice?
Now that we’ve covered why you would use Google Sheets for your WordPress forms, let’s cover how to send form submissions to Google Sheets.
How do I import a form into Google Sheets?
It’s easy to connect your WordPress form to Google Sheets with Formidable Forms, the best form builder plugin for WordPress.
With our Business Plan, you get Google Sheets integration to make your life much easier. We know you’d love to send your WordPress form to Google Sheets for free, but unfortunately, there aren’t plugins that offer this feature for free.
But don’t worry. You get 14 days to try it out. If you don’t like it, you’ll get your money back. No questions asked.
One thing to note (which will save you some time) is it’s easier if you’ve already created your Google Sheet with your Google account for your form data. So, if you haven’t, make that.
Once you’ve got Formidable installed and activated and your Google Sheet file created, here are the steps:
Are you ready? Let’s get started!
Step 1: Activate your Google Sheets add-on
Alright, you have Formidable, and you’re as excited as ever to get started!
So, go to your WordPress dashboard and Formidable → Add-Ons, then find the Google Spreadsheet WordPress plugin and click Install.
Well done, step one is now finished!
Step 2: Create a Google API project
Step two takes the most time.
That’s because Google requires a little setup on their end to get things working correctly.
For the complete steps, head to this Knowledge Base document. It guides you through the process step-by-step. But, to highlight them, here’s what you’ll need to do:
- Create a Google API project
- Setup OAuth Consent Screen
- Get OAuth Client ID
- Save project keys in settings
- Display your form
Don’t let the wording scare you, though. It’s pretty simple, and our docs cover it in detail for you.
So, once you get that setup, head to step two.
Step 3: Make your Google Sheets form
Now that you’ve finished step one, the hard work is behind you, and everything is easy peasy from here on out.
So, let’s get your form in WordPress set up.
To do this, go to your WordPress dashboard, then Formidable → Forms → Add New.
You can choose from one of our many pre-made templates, or you can select Blank Form if you want to start from scratch.
Once you’ve picked, give your form a name, then click Create.
Here, you can customize your form to your liking using Formidable’s simple drag-and-drop builder. Email, text boxes, and more are easy to grab and drop into your form.
If you want to customize the field settings, use the form field editor on the left side after you click the field to edit.
Once your form is created, click Update, which is our save button.
Now, let’s set up your Google Sheets connection.
Step 4: Connect and Edit your Google Sheets action
Go to Settings → Actions & Notifications and click the Google Sheets icon.
This will open additional settings below. Here, give your action an Action Name for your reference. Only you will see this.
You have a few other options you can customize here, too.
- Action Name — Set your action name
- Trigger this action when — Choose when the action is triggered
- Select File — Select the Google Sheets file where you want to send the data (make sure to add a column header in the Google Sheet to map your fields to the headers)
- Select Sheet — If you have multiple sheets in your file, then you can choose what sheet the data is sent to
- Map Sheet Headers — Map your form fields to your sheet headers
Once you’re done, click Update to save your changes. Now, once the form is submitted, everything is taken care of for you.
Note: If you already have existing form entries, you can send those, too! No data left behind is our thought process.
So, now that we have everything set up, it’s time to display your form to start getting those entries!
Step 5: Display your form
Displaying your form on your website with Formidable is easy.
Simply go to the post/page on your WordPress site you want to display the form and add a new WordPress block. Search Formidable, and select the Formidable WordPress block.
Select your form from the dropdown menu, then update your page.
And that’s it! All your entries will now automatically be sent straight to Google Sheets.
If you want to embed your Google Sheets form, we have that option also!
Simply go to Formidable → Forms and click the <> button underneath Actions next to your form.
Then, select Insert manually and copy the WordPress shortcode.
Last, go to your post/page and add a Shortcode WordPress block, and paste your shortcode into it. Click Update, and you’re done!
Handle all your form data with Formidable
Whether you want to send a WordPress contact form to Google spreadsheets, payment information, or more, it’s all simple with Formidable’s WordPress spreadsheet forms.
That’s because Formidable is one of the few plugins with native Google Sheets integration.
Other plugins (WPForms, Ninja Forms, and more) require using a separate automation plugin. But, at Formidable, we want to make your life easier.
But that doesn’t only apply to Google Sheets. Here are just a few of the features you get with Formidable:
And so much more. We’d list them all, but we know your time is valuable. So, if you want a full list of features, head to our Features page to view them.
Are you ready to connect your WordPress form to Google Sheets?
As you can see, connecting Formidable and Google Sheets is as simple as making eggs in the morning.
In this post, you learned how to send your WordPress form to a spreadsheet on Google Sheets. And how easy it is with Formidable.
We imagine if you're using Google Sheets, you're using other Google services, too. So, you may be interested in learning how to set up a Google Drive file upload form!
But we’re curious to hear from you. What will you use the Google Sheets feature for? Let us know in the comments!
And, if you’re not already, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube for more Google Sheets and WordPress tips!
How to Set Up a Google Drive File Upload Form in WordPress
Is there a way to do this without using Zapier? I don't like to have an intermediary outside of my control for transferring vital information. That is why I so far hesitated to use Formidable functions which depend on Zapier. I don't want to involve a third party in a for my company essential process.
You could manually export form data as a CSV file and then move it across to Google sheets. But it'd take longer of course, which is why we recommend using Zapier.
I thought a native integration was coming out between FP and GS. There was a 3rd party add-on in the past that said they sold the code to you. Is still on the radar or did you abandoned the idea?
+1 to this question!
Another +1 to this question.
Hi everyone, thanks for reaching out. We didn’t realize this was still on your radar, but we’ll make sure to look into it a bit more.
Hi, is it possible to retrieve the entries sent to Google Sheet and display (view) it back in the wordpress?
Hi Farhan,
It sounds like you are referring to a two-way sync between Google Sheets and your form entries. Doing this automatically isn't currently supported, but you could manually import spreadsheet values into WordPress form entries using the CSV Import feature.
There is an alternative to Zapier, if you want to pull WordPress stats data to Google Sheets. I myself been looking for an easier tool to use and found Coupler.io that can synchronize your WordPress data with Google Sheets on a set schedule. And there is no need to buy it in order to try how it works
This is awesome. Thank you for writing this up. Bookmarked this one as I have plans for this!
This is going to be a really useful feature!
This is going to be a really useful feature!
What a great integration to further manipulate data from entries!
I love this add-on for super extendable power of data analysis! Formidable makes it so easy.
A good add-on for the platform, specially if you like to have a backup of your data for if the website is down or broken.
I'm already considering to upgrade my account so that I can have this feature.
Nice!
Please add csv, xls or ods support too! G Sheets file format is difficult to work with
Thanks for the suggestion. CSV exporting of entries is currently supported, and we'll look into the other options as well.