Step 1: Open your spreadsheet

Open the spreadsheet you want to make view-only.

Step 2: Share the spreadsheet

Click on the Share button, which is located in the upper-right corner of your screen.

Step 3: Change access permissions

In the sharing interface that appears, you will see a section titled "General access." By default, it is set to "Restricted." Click to open the dropdown list and select “Anyone with the link.”

Alternatively, you can type in the emails of those whom you want to view the document. Click on the “Add people and groups” search bar and type in the email(s) of those you want to give access to the spreadsheet.

Step 4: Change permissions to "Viewer"

After updating the general access permissions or adding the emails you want to give view-only access to, a dropdown will appear next to “Anyone with the link.”

Click on the dropdown menu and select "Viewer." This will ensure that anyone with the link can only view the spreadsheet.

Step 5: Uncheck the box to stop users from making a copy

You can choose to disable downloading, printing and copying for viewers. This way, users can only view the document without making a copy for themselves.

To do this, click on the settings symbol at the top-right of the sharing dialog. Then uncheck the box beside “Viewers and commenters can see the option to download, print, and copy.” This adds an extra layer of security to prevent viewers from making copies or downloading the file.

Step 6: Copy the shareable link

After changing the access to "Viewer," you can copy the shareable link at the bottom of the sharing interface. You can now share that link with others, and they will only be able to view the spreadsheet.

Step 7: Click on “Done”

Once you have adjusted the sharing settings to "Viewer" and any additional settings, click on “Done.”

Step 1: Log in to Softr or create an account

First, you will need to login to Softr. If you don’t have an account, you can sign up to Softr for free.

Step 2: Click on “New Application”

Softr offers a wide variety of templates that can simplify the process of creating apps with data stored in Google Sheets. To access these templates, click on “New Application.”

Step 3: Select a template

You’ll be navigated to the template gallery, where you can choose to build from scratch or select a template that fits your project.

For example, if you want to use your Google Sheets spreadsheet to create a content calendar or a client portal and make it view only, scroll down until you find the Content Calendar Template or the Client Portal Template. Then click on it.

Step 4: Click on “Use Template”

You’ll be presented with an overview of the template you chose. Once you’re sure that is what you need, click on the “Use Template” button at the bottom right corner.

Step 5: Connect Softr and Google Sheets

To make your Google Sheets data view-only using Softr, you have to connect both products.

Step 5.1 Choose Google Sheets as the data source

First, grant Softr access to your data in Google Sheets. Click on the “Select data source” dropdown and choose “Google Sheets.” Then click on “Continue.”

Step 5.2: Log in to your Google account

If this is your first time connecting your Google account to Softr, you’ll be redirected to the Google login screen, where you click on the account where the file is saved.

Step 5.3: Authorize Softr

Next, authorize Softr to make changes in your Google Sheets and Google Drive files, by ticking the two boxes highlighted in the image below. Then click on “Continue.”

Step 6: Click on “Go to application”

After connecting Softr with Google Sheets, you will be redirected to the onboarding page. Click on "Go to application" to continue creating your app with your Google Sheets data.

Step 7: Delete all blocks

Before creating your column chart, delete unnecessary pre-built blocks to start building on a blank canvas, by hovering on each section and clicking on the delete button.

Step 8: Add a new block

Click on the “+” sign, either at the center or the top right corner of your screen, to add a new block, such as a calendar.

Step 9: Select a block

If you’re looking for a calendar, for example, type “calendar” and preview by hovering and clicking on the block to add it.

Step 10: Choose from which Google Sheet file you want to import the data

To connect your data source, go to the Source tab and click on the dropdown under “Source” to select the Google Sheet account you want to use.

Step 11: Select the specific sheet that has the data you need

Click on the dropdown below “Document” to select the spreadsheet that contains the data you need, then click on the dropdown below “Sheet” to select the specific sheet you want to import data from.

Step 12: Access the pages

After selecting the Google Sheets spreadsheet you want to use, click on the “Pages” button at the top left corner of your screen to select the page you want to edit and access its settings.

Step 13: Click on the three dots beside the page you want to edit

Beside the name of the page you wish to edit, click on the three dots at the top right and select "Settings" to update permissions.

Step 14: Adjust the permission settings

In the page settings, click on the “Visibility” button to choose who can see your data.

Step 14.1: Choose who you want to view the data

To define who can view your data, you can choose one of three options:

• All users: includes those who are logged in and those who aren’t;
• Logged-in users: only those with password access can view;
• Non-logged-in users: only those who are not logged in can view.

Click to select which one works best for you.

Step 14.3 Create a user group

To create a user group, click on “Users” on the left side of your screen and select the User Groups tab. Then click on “Add user group” at the top right corner of your screen.

Step 14.4 Name your user group

After clicking on “Add user group,” a text box will pop up asking you to name your user group. Type the name you want based on what they do, then click on “Next.”

Step 14.5 Add users to your new group

Once you have a user group, you need to add users to it. You can do this manually or by adding users based on their attributes with conditions. To add users manually, click on the first dropdown list to select one or more existing users. To add users based on conditions, open the second dropdown to select a logged-in user's attribute and specify a relevant condition and value.

After creating a user group, you can use it to control who can see a particular block or page.

Step 15: Set block visibility for logged-in users

To set block visibility for logged-in users, go to the block's visibility settings, select logged-in users, and select the relevant user group from the dropdown list. For example, if you want to restrict access to the page to your campaign and content managers, select both options.

Step 16: Test and optimize

Click on the “Preview” button to test and ensure the permission settings work well. Then publish and share with those whom you want to view the data.