Speeding up your Google Sheets experience can involve several strategies, depending on what aspect of Sheets you're finding slow. Here are some general tips that can help improve the performance of your Google Sheets:
Volatile functions recalculate every time your sheet updates, which can slow performance. Minimize the use of functions like TODAY(), NOW(), RAND(), and RANDBETWEEN().
Complex formulas that depend on other cells or entire columns can slow down your sheet. Break them into simpler, smaller parts when possible to improve performance.
ARRAYFORMULA() can handle large arrays of data at once but can also slow down your sheet if used excessively. Use it only when necessary and with smaller data sets.
Functions like IMPORTRANGE(), IMPORTDATA(), IMPORTFEED(), and IMPORTHTML() make external calls, which can decrease performance. Use these functions sparingly.
Excessive conditional formatting can impact the speed of your Google Sheets. Limit its use to essential instances only.
Scripts and add-ons can enhance functionality but may slow down your sheets if not optimized. Regularly review and remove any unnecessary ones.
Data and formulas that extend far beyond the visible area can still affect your sheet's performance. Delete any unused rows and columns to improve speed.
Large sheets can be cumbersome and slow to work with. Consider dividing your data into multiple smaller sheets for better performance.
Browser extensions can slow down web applications, including Google Sheets. Disable extensions that you don't need for your work.
Network issues can impact Google Sheets' performance. Working offline can help mitigate this, especially for data entry and editing tasks.
A cluttered browser cache can hinder performance. Clearing your browser's cache and cookies may speed up Google Sheets.
An outdated browser can negatively affect the performance of web applications. Make sure your browser is updated to the latest version.
Charts and images are resource-intensive and can slow down your Sheets. Use them judiciously and opt for simpler visuals where possible.
We hope that you now have a better understanding of how to speed up Google Sheets. If you enjoyed this article, you might also like our article on fixing Google Sheets ‘Your access has expired’ or our article on how to create a task tracker in Google Sheets.
