The AI function in Google Sheets attaches a list of the web pages used to every cell it fills with data from Google Search. Google presented the new feature in the Workspace Updates blog and raised the upper limit at the same time: a single request processes up to 3,000 cells. Since October 20, Google has been rolling out both gradually in the plans that include Gemini in Sheets: Business Standard and Plus, Enterprise Standard and Plus, as well as the personal subscriptions Google AI Pro and Google AI Ultra.
How do you find the source of a cell?
You type the AI function in like a formula, for example =AI("Name the company headquarters"; A2); =Gemini() works the same way. Alternatively, you insert the function via Insert > Function > AI and click Generate and insert. To see the sources, you click a cell, hover the mouse over the content, and select the Sources icon.
The German help page on the AI function still restricts the display of sources to participants in Workspace Experiments and beta programs. With the update, all accounts in which Gemini in Sheets is enabled get to see the sources, without an admin having to change anything. The sources appear only in Google Sheets in the browser, not in the apps.
What changes for large spreadsheets?
Until now, the limit was 350 selected cells, and you had to select the rest in a second pass. The help page still states this limit; Google has not yet adjusted the text to the new 3,000 cells. For a task with 500 cells, Google cites processing that is up to 55 times faster than typing by hand. The figure comes from an internal study with 95 participants who used English prompts.
Gemini processes only the range you specify as the second argument, not the entire spreadsheet. The AI function does not run inside IF or other formulas, and a run cannot be undone, only regenerated. Google also limits how much you may generate: if your quota is used up over a longer period, Generate stays locked for up to 24 hours.
How does Excel compare?
Microsoft removed its comparable formula =COPILOT() from Excel as of September 14, 2026. The function was only available as a preview in the Frontier program, through which Microsoft gives test customers early access to new Copilot features, as the Microsoft help page notes; existing formulas show the error #NAME? the next time they are recalculated. Instead of a formula, Microsoft recommends Copilot in Excel, where you describe the task in your own words. Google, by contrast, is sticking with the formula in the cell and expanding it.
What this means for you
If you use the AI function to research facts such as company headquarters, opening hours, or competitor prices, it is best to check the linked sources in a few spot checks before you share the spreadsheet. In the version history, the inserted content appears under your name, so a wrong value reflects on you.
You should also always include the data range as the second argument; the help page explicitly recommends this for better results. If you work with Business Starter, Gemini in Sheets is missing entirely, as the Google pricing overview shows; the AI function including sources is only included from Business Standard onward. Free Google accounts are likewise not on the list in the announcement. How to combine spreadsheets and AI for data tasks is shown in the lesson on Google Sheets and AI in the AI Guide.
Google presented the new feature on October 28, 2026.
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