You already know spreadsheets. Now add AI to them.
You manage inventories, plan content, track leads, and analyze data inside Google Sheets. But the moment you need to generate product descriptions, classify customer feedback, translate text, or summarize research, you open ChatGPT in another tab, copy data back and forth, and lose 30 seconds per row. Across 200 rows, that is a wasted hour.
SheetMagic adds AI formulas directly into Google Sheets. You type =AITEXT("your prompt", A2) the same way you would type =SUM(A2:A10). The AI processes your prompt, reads the data you point it at, and returns the result in the cell. One formula, one cell, one result. Drag it down and every row runs independently.
This guide walks you through installation, your first formula, and the full set of functions available to you. By the end, you will have a working AI-powered spreadsheet.
Install SheetMagic in under 60 seconds
Open the Google Workspace Marketplace
Go to the Google Workspace Marketplace and search for SheetMagic. You can also get there from inside any Google Sheet: click Extensions > Add-ons > Get add-ons and search for "SheetMagic" in the marketplace search bar.
Click Install and grant permissions
Click the Install button. Google will ask you to select your account and approve permissions. SheetMagic needs access to your spreadsheet data (to read cell values and write results) and external network access (to call AI providers and scrape websites). These are standard permissions for any add-on that processes data.
Open a spreadsheet and find the SheetMagic menu
After installation, open any Google Sheet. Click Extensions in the top menu bar. You should see SheetMagic listed in the dropdown. This is your control center for switching AI models, managing API keys, and accessing settings.
Run your first formula
Click on any empty cell. Type this formula and press Enter:
=AITEXT("Write a one-sentence summary of what Google Sheets is")
In a few seconds, the cell will populate with an AI-generated response. You just ran your first AI formula.
That is it. No API keys to configure on the free tier, no developer console, no environment variables. The AI formulas are immediately available in every spreadsheet on your Google account.
The free tier gives you 5,000 AI tokens and 50 integration credits per month. That is enough to test every formula in this guide and build a few real workflows. No credit card required. See the pricing page for paid plan details.
The core formulas
SheetMagic adds three categories of formulas to Google Sheets: AI generation, web scraping, and page data extraction. Here is every formula you should know.
AI formulas -- generate, transform, and analyze text
=AITEXT() is the workhorse. Pass a prompt and an optional cell reference, and get text back.
=AITEXT("Translate the following to French:", B2)Sends the content of B2 to the AI model with your translation instruction. The result appears in the formula cell.
=AITEXT("Classify the sentiment of this review as Positive, Neutral, or Negative. Return only the label.", A2)Returns a single word -- great for filtering and sorting an entire column of reviews.
=AILIST() generates a vertical list from a prompt. Instead of one block of text, it spreads results across cells in a column.
=AILIST("List 10 blog post ideas about remote work productivity")Returns 10 results, one per cell, spreading downward from the formula cell.
=AILISTH() does the same thing horizontally -- results spread across columns in a single row.
=AIIMAGE() generates images from text descriptions, directly inside your sheet.
=AIIMAGE("A minimalist logo for a coffee shop called Brew and Bean, white background, flat design")Generates an image using DALL-E and displays it in the cell. Powered by OpenAI.
=AISPEECH() converts text to audio with 11 voice options.
=AISPEECH(A2, "nova")Converts the text in A2 to audio using the Nova voice. Returns a playable audio link.
=AIVIDEO() creates short videos from text descriptions.
=GPTV() analyzes images. Pass an image URL and a prompt, and the AI describes, categorizes, or extracts information from the image.
=GPTV(A2, "Describe this product image in one sentence for an e-commerce listing")Analyzes the image at the URL in A2 and returns a text description.
You can chain formulas together. Use =AITEXT() to generate a product description, then pass that description to =AIIMAGE() to create a matching visual. Use =AITEXT() to write a script, then pass it to =AISPEECH() to create a voiceover. All without leaving your spreadsheet.
Web scraping formulas -- pull data from any website
=SERP() returns structured search engine results for any keyword.
=SERP("best crm software for startups")Returns up to 20 search results with titles, URLs, snippets, and positions.
=BULKSERP() returns the same data in a horizontal layout -- one row per keyword, results spread across columns.
=VISIT() retrieves the full text content of any webpage, up to 50,000 characters.
=VISIT(A2)Pulls the full page content from the URL in A2. Supports JavaScript-rendered pages.
=PAGEDATA() extracts metadata from one or more URLs in a single call.
=PAGEDATA(A2)Returns structured metadata for the URL in A2: Title, Description, H1, and HTTP Status.
=GETSELECTOR() scrapes content using CSS selectors for precise extraction.
=GETIMG() extracts image URLs from any page.
=DOMAINCHECK() verifies whether a domain name is available for registration.
Page metadata formulas -- extract SEO data fast
These formulas extract specific metadata from any URL. They are purpose-built for SEO workflows:
| Formula | What it extracts |
|---|---|
=GETMETATITLE(A2) | The page's title tag |
=GETMETADESCRIPTION(A2) | The meta description |
=GETH1(A2) | The H1 heading |
=GETH2(A2) | All H2 headings |
=GETHEADINGS(A2) | All headings (H1-H6) |
=GETP(A2) | All paragraph text |
For a complete walkthrough of scraping workflows, read the web scraping guide. For SEO-specific applications, see 5 ways to use AI for SEO.
Choosing the right AI model
SheetMagic connects to multiple AI providers. You switch between them in the SheetMagic settings (Extensions > SheetMagic > Settings) and your formulas stay exactly the same -- the model change applies globally.
| Provider | Models | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| OpenAI | GPT-5, GPT-4o | General purpose, creative writing, image generation (DALL-E 3), video (Sora 2) |
| Anthropic Claude | Opus, Sonnet, Haiku | Analytical tasks, detailed formatting, long-form content |
| Google Gemini | 2.5 Pro, 2.5 Flash | Fast processing, multilingual tasks, image generation (Imagen 4), video (Veo 3) |
| OpenRouter | 100+ models | Access to specialized and open-source models |
| Straico | 60+ models | Wide model selection, alternative pricing |
| Mistral | Mistral Large, Medium | European languages, cost-efficient processing |
| Perplexity | Online models | Research-oriented tasks, fact-based answers with citations |
How API keys work: Subscribers (Solo, Team, Business) use SheetMagic's platform API keys -- you do not need to set up anything. Lifetime deal (LTD) users bring their own API keys (BYOK) and get unlimited usage at their provider's rates. You can manage BYOK keys under Extensions > SheetMagic > Manage AI API Keys. For more on plans, visit pricing.
Five things to build right now
Now that you are set up, here are specific workflows with the exact formulas to get you started.
1. Product catalog enrichment
Put product names in column A, specs in column B, and generate everything else:
=AITEXT("Write a 2-sentence product description for an e-commerce listing. Be specific and highlight the main benefit.", A2&" -- "&B2)Generates a unique description for each product using its name and specs as context.
Extend this by adding columns for SEO titles (=AITEXT("Write an SEO title under 60 characters for:", A2)), meta descriptions, and even product images (=AIIMAGE("Product photo of "&A2&", white background, studio lighting")).
2. Lead research from company websites
Put prospect URLs in column A, then extract everything you need for outreach:
=AITEXT("Extract: company name, what they do in one sentence, industry, headquarters city, approximate company size. Format as pipe-separated values.", VISIT(A2))Scrapes each company website with =VISIT() and uses AI to extract structured prospect data.
Follow up with a personalized email opener:
=AITEXT("Write a 2-sentence cold email opener for a prospect at "&B2&" in the "&D2&" industry. Reference something specific about their business.", C2)Uses the scraped company description (C2) to generate a personalized outreach message.
3. Content calendar generation
=AILIST("Generate 10 blog post ideas for a SaaS company that sells project management software. Focus on bottom-of-funnel topics that address specific pain points.")Returns 10 ideas in separate cells. Each one can feed into a content brief formula.
4. Multilingual content at scale
=AITEXT("Translate to Spanish. Return only the translation, no commentary.", A2)Clean translation output that is ready to use without editing.
Duplicate the column and change "Spanish" to "French," "German," or "Japanese" for instant multilingual content.
5. Survey and review analysis
=AITEXT("Analyze this customer review. Return three fields separated by pipes: Sentiment (Positive/Neutral/Negative) | Main Topic | One-sentence summary. No other text.", A2)Structured output that you can split into columns with =SPLIT(B2, "|").
Run this across hundreds of reviews and use Google Sheets' built-in =COUNTIF() to tally sentiment distribution. No survey analysis tool required.
Tips for getting the best results
Test one cell, then scale. Always run your formula on a single row first. Review the output. Adjust your prompt. Then drag down.
Be explicit about output format. "Return only the label" or "Respond in under 20 words" prevents the AI from being verbose. In a spreadsheet context, concise output is almost always better.
Use cell references, not hardcoded data. =AITEXT("Summarize:", A2) is reusable. =AITEXT("Summarize: The quick brown fox...") is not. Point your formulas at cells and your sheet becomes dynamic.
Combine AI and scraping. The most powerful workflows use =SERP(), =VISIT(), or =PAGEDATA() to gather data, then =AITEXT() to process it. See the SEO guide and web scraping guide for detailed examples.
Switch models for different tasks. Claude tends to follow formatting instructions precisely. GPT-4o is strong at creative writing. Gemini is fast and handles large contexts well. Experiment under Extensions > SheetMagic > Settings.
What comes next
You have SheetMagic installed, you know the formulas, and you have five ready-to-use workflows. The free tier gives you 5,000 AI tokens and 50 integration credits per month -- enough to build real automations and see the value before committing to a paid plan.
When you are ready for more, paid plans start at $19/month with 3 million AI tokens and 1,000 integration credits. Visit the pricing page for the full breakdown.
For deeper guides on specific use cases:
- How to use AI formulas in Google Sheets -- prompt engineering techniques and advanced examples
- 5 ways to use AI for SEO in Google Sheets -- a complete SEO workflow
- The complete guide to web scraping in Google Sheets -- every scraping formula explained
- March 2026 product update -- AI Chat sidebar and Apify integrations
Install SheetMagic free from the Google Workspace Marketplace and run your first formula in the next two minutes.
Have questions? Check the documentation or visit the FAQ for answers to common questions about AI formulas, web scraping, providers, and billing.