Google Workspace Changes

Google Sheets now preserves grouped pivot table fields as reusable source fields and improves Excel interoperability.

Google Sheets now supports grouped field persistence for pivot tables. When you create custom groupings or work with grouped date, time, or numeric fields, these fields are retained directly in the pivot table editor sidebar as reusable source fields, allowing you to unassign them from your active table layout without losing their underlying configuration, making it easy to re-add or modify them at any time. Additionally, this update improves interoperability with Microsoft Excel (.xlsx) files by preserving grouped field configurations when importing/exporting spreadsheet files, eliminating the need to manually recreate groupings.

Sheets canvas, a Gemini-powered feature, lets users create interactive, read-write visualizations in Google Sheets using natural language prompts.

Google Sheets canvas transforms spreadsheets into custom, interactive mini-apps via natural language prompts, enabling end-to-end creation, real-time read-write sync, flexible adjustments, and familiar sharing tools. It supports use cases like Kanban boards, dashboards, and whiteboards, and is rolling out to Rapid and Scheduled release domains starting August 10 and August 31, 2026 respectively.

Users can create aliases for BigQuery column names directly within Connected Sheets for clearer presentation.

Connected Sheets now lets users assign friendly aliases to BigQuery column names, improving readability without altering the underlying database reference. Aliases can be used interchangeably with original column names in formulas and inputs, making reports easier to understand for broader audiences.

Users can reference multiple values in a single list parameter by selecting a grid range in Google Sheets, enabling flexible querying with BigQuery data.

When writing a query in Connected Sheets, users can now select a grid range in a sheet to define a list parameter, where each cell acts as a distinct value. This allows data admins and power users to set up input sheets with drop‑downs or direct cell selections for end‑users to filter data without editing the underlying query, broadening self‑service analytics.

Excel pivot tables backed by table ranges now import as linked pivot tables in Google Sheets.

Sheets now fully supports importing Excel pivot tables that are backed by table ranges, preserving their link to the source data so they remain dynamic rather than being converted to static grids.

Excel tables now import as Google Sheets tables, preserving formatting and structure.

When converting Excel files to Google Sheets, Excel tables are now imported as native Sheets tables, maintaining their formatting, structured references, and table-specific features, eliminating the need for manual reconstruction.