You can send every finished response into a Google Sheet. The columns match the Excel download on the results page. HeySurvey adds new rows. Rows that are already in the sheet stay as they are.

Open the survey, go to results, and choose Google Sheets.

Connect a spreadsheet

The first time, Google asks you to let HeySurvey work with spreadsheets. HeySurvey only receives the file you pick in the next step. The rest of your Drive stays private.

A Google window then opens. That window is Google's file picker. Choose the spreadsheet. After that, HeySurvey lists the tabs inside it.

Pick an empty tab, or create one named HeySurvey Responses. The first row of that tab becomes the column names, the same names as the Excel file.

Heads up: the Google account has to be the one already linked to your HeySurvey login, or a Google account that uses the same email address. A different Google account will not connect, and you stay signed in as yourself.

What a row contains

Each finished response is one row. From the left, the columns are:

• Response ID
• Date, in UTC
• first_name, last_name, and email
• Custom fields, any extra contact details written as key: value
• Final Score, only while scoring is turned on, with two decimal places
• One column per question, in the same order as the survey

A matrix question becomes one column per row, named like Question title - row label. Selected options in that row are joined with commas.

A form fields question becomes one column per field, named like Question title - field label.

Other questions use the same text as the Excel download. An empty answer says No answer. A ranking answer looks like Label (rank). A file answer is a link back to HeySurvey, the same link the Excel file uses. The link keeps working while that file is still attached to the response.

Older responses sit at the top. New ones are added at the bottom. Responses you already collected are included when you connect.

Only finished responses are sent. If someone leaves halfway, that response stays out until they finish.

A new row usually shows up right away. It can take about 10 minutes.

The results page and the Excel file

The sheet receives every finished response for the survey.

Filters on the results page change what you see there, and what the Excel download includes. They do not change the sheet. The Excel download can also include unfinished responses. The sheet waits until a response is finished.

The first row

The first row is the column names. Leave it in place.

If you edit or delete that row, syncing stops. The results page says so. Put the original names back, then choose Try again. Or disconnect and connect an empty tab.

A tab that already has your own column names is refused. HeySurvey does not place answers into a layout you built yourself. Use an empty tab, or create HeySurvey Responses.

Two surveys cannot share one tab.

When the survey changes

Adding a question, a matrix row, a form field, or scoring adds a column on the right. Older rows stay blank in that new column.

Renaming a question only changes the name in the first row. The answers stay in the same column.

Removing a question leaves the old column where it is. Later rows leave that column blank.

Renaming a matrix row or a form field starts a new column. The earlier answers stay under the old name. That is the same matching the Excel download uses.

An answer changed after submit stays as it was in the sheet. The Response ID in the first column is there so a later update can find the row.

Switching, disconnecting, and teammates

Choosing a different spreadsheet fills that new sheet from scratch with every finished response. The old spreadsheet is left as it was, so you can end up with two copies.

Disconnecting stops new rows. The spreadsheet stays as it is.

Anyone on your HeySurvey account can connect or disconnect. The rows are written with the Google account of the person who connected. If that person removes HeySurvey from their Google account, or leaves the team, syncing stops until someone connects again. The results page shows the error.

You can also disconnect Google yourself. Open Account settings and choose the Integrations tab, then Disconnect Google. Every survey that was sending rows with your Google account stops. The spreadsheets stay as they are, and you can still sign in with Google. Connect again from a survey's results page, then choose Try again.

A few limits

A very long written answer is cut at 50,000 characters. That is Google's limit for one cell.

An answer that starts like a formula is stored as text, with a ' in front, so the spreadsheet does not run it. A normal negative number, such as a score of -1.50, is left as it is.