Trouble with Google Sheets Flow

How To
1

Hello!

One of our clients is experiencing a broken flow into a Google Sheets destination. Based on the error message, it seems the issue may be related to exceeding the 10 million cell limit in Google Sheets.

Could you please confirm if this limitation is indeed the cause and share more details about the main limitations of Google Sheets that they should be aware of? Additionally, what are the recommended ways to avoid or resolve this issue - such as reducing data volume, splitting data across multiple sheets, or using alternative destinations?

2

Hi,

Yes, the issue you’re encountering is most likely due to the Google Sheets API limitation of 10 million cells per file. This is a well-documented limitation and is described in more detail on our Dataddo documentation page. The short answer is, if your data volume reaches 10M cells or more, consider using a data warehouse like Google BigQuery.

:mag: Key Considerations Based on Dataddo Flows
Please review the following aspects of your source and flow configuration:

:white_check_mark: 1. Source Configuration & Date Range
If your source supports date range extraction, check whether it’s set to:

  • “Yesterday” on a daily basis
    → This is ideal for flow Write Mode: Insert
    → Suitable for smaller datasets, since you’re only appending one day’s worth of data per day.

  • “Last 30 days” on a rolling basis
    → This should use Write Mode: Truncate Insert
    → Ensures you’re always overwriting the previous 30 days, preventing accumulation and avoiding the 10M cell limit.

  • If the source extracts lifetime data every day or outputs a high volume of rows (e.g., detailed ad metrics or large financial transactions), then using Google Sheets as a destination is not recommended due to the rapid consumption of cell capacity.

:gear: 2. Write Mode Settings in Dataddo

  • Insert Mode:
    Good for small daily data. Over time, however, this will accumulate rows, eventually hitting the cell limit.

  • Truncate Insert Mode:
    Recommended when you’re refreshing a specific time range (e.g., last 7 or 30 days). This helps avoid duplication and keeps cell usage controlled.

:rotating_light: 3. Google Sheets Limitations

  • 10 million cells per file

  • Maximum 18,278 columns per sheet

  • Maximum 200 sheets per file

  • API request limits (dependent on user quota)

More details can be found in the official Google Sheets limits.

:hammer_and_wrench: Recommended Solutions

  • Split data across multiple Sheets files or tabs if feasible.

  • Optimize the time range and write mode to avoid accumulation.

  • Consider using a dynamic date range (e.g., last 30 days) with Truncate Insert to ensure stale data is removed automatically.

  • Move to a data warehouse like Google BigQuery, PostgreSQL, or other scalable destinations if you’re dealing with large datasets or long-term storage.

I hope this helps!

Best,
Anas