Imported from ccyang-aier/aistack (codex/plugins/spreadsheets/skills/spreadsheets/SKILL.md). Install upstream with npx skills add ccyang-aier/aistack --skill spreadsheets. Copyright stays with the author.

Spreadsheets skill

This skill includes requirements and guidance for producing a correct, polished spreadsheet artifact quickly that completes the user's request. When producing spreadsheets, workbooks, or Google Sheets-targeted outputs, you will be judged on layout, readability, style, adherence to industry norms/conventions and correctness. Follow the requirements below for how to use the APIs effectively and how to verify your output before finalizing work for the user.

For complex, analytical, financial or research involved tasks, you are especially judged on correctness and quality. You need to be professional. For these, always make sure you have a plan for how you're organizing the spreadsheet, and the data or visualizations within each sheet. For business, finance, operations, dashboard, and data-analysis prompts, aim for an output that can compete with a strong analyst-built workbook, not just a functional grid. A good default shape is an executive summary or dashboard first, then source/assumptions, then model/detail sheets. For simpler tasks like a creating template or tracker, or things that do not require research, prioritize doing the spreadsheet build and edits quickly, while ensuring the user's request is fulfilled.

For additional stylistic best practices, follow: style_guidelines.md

Read charts.md when creating or editing substantive charts, dashboards, or chart-ready summaries.

Google Sheets-targeted output

New Creations

For a net-new Google Sheets request, create and verify a local .xlsx with this skill first. The native Google Sheets deliverable must then be produced by the Google Drive plugin's spreadsheet import action, mcp__codex_apps__google_drive_import_spreadsheet, with upload_mode: "native_google_sheets".

Do not use Computer Use, Browser Use, blank-Google-Sheets creation plus Google Sheets write APIs, or another direct-to-Sheets construction path for net-new Google Sheets unless the user explicitly asks for that alternate workflow. If they do, mention first that output quality is expected to be best when a local .xlsx is imported through the Google Drive plugin.

If the Google Drive plugin is unavailable, use the plugin-install/user-elicitation flow to ask the user to install google-drive@openai-curated. If the plugin is available but _import_spreadsheet is missing, ask the user to reinstall or refresh the Google Drive plugin before continuing with the native Google Sheets deliverable.

After successful native import, the user-facing deliverable is the Google Sheets link. Treat the local .xlsx as a build artifact unless the user explicitly asks to keep or receive it.

Edits

Use the Google Drive plugin's Google Sheets skill for edits to existing Google Sheets. The local .xlsx creation and native import workflow above applies only to net-new Google Sheets deliverables.

Tools + Contract

• Use Codex workspace dependencies for spreadsheet artifact work: resolve them through the workspace dependency loader or runtime skill, then treat the returned Node/Python runtimes, package directory, and verification details as authoritative. Do not use system node, system python, global npm packages, or repo-local installs.
• Use @oai/artifact-tool JS library, which exists in the default Codex workspace dependencies node_modules, for authoring, editing, inspecting, rendering, and exporting spreadsheet .xlsx workbooks.
• Run builders from a writable conversation-specific temp or workspace directory, not from the managed dependency directory. Outputs and scratch files may live under the OS temp directory.
• Start by setting up the work directory to work with normal Node module resolution: link or junction local node_modules to the workspace dependency node_modules so import "@oai/artifact-tool" resolves.
• Prefer one executable .mjs builder; patch and rerun it when iterating. Do NOT use shell heredocs or keep extra builder copies.
• If workspace dependencies or @oai/artifact-tool are unavailable, report a setup blocker; do not guess paths, install packages, use system deps, alter module resolution, copy/import bundled internals, or do a broad file system search.
• Do not search package internals or dump prototypes to discover APIs. Use the API reference below; if blocked, run at most one exact workbook.help("<api_or_feature>") query before building.
• Final response: include a short user-visible summary and standalone Markdown link(s) only to final .xlsx artifact(s), one per line: [Revenue Model - MNST.xlsx](/absolute/path/to/revenue_model_mnst.xlsx).
• Do not mention internal tooling or support artifacts such as builders, rendered previews, JSON/CSV/log files, or scratch files unless explicitly requested.
• Do not use alternate workbook creation/editing libraries such as openpyxl, xlsxwriter, or pandas.ExcelWriter unless the user explicitly asks for a non-artifact-tool fallback.
• For analysis outside workbook authoring, use JS or spreadsheet formulas when sufficient. If Python is needed, use bundled Python libraries, save JSON/CSV intermediates, and have the JS builder create the workbook. Keep auditable/user-editable calculations as formulas.
• For nontrivial work, use update_plan: build quickly, verify/render, repair meaningful issues, then finalize without long polish loops. Incrementally rendering your work and assessing overall aesthetics, formatting and correctness along the way is very important (rigorously inspect the output and be confident in quality), but do not get stuck in a long render-verify loop. As part of your plan, think about the best practices and conventions to follow for the specific type of spreadsheet you're creating and the best way to structure the workbook for readability and usability.

Domain Requirements

Read these domain templates only when the request clearly relates to the domain:

• Finance, accounting, valuation, forecasting, budgeting, investing, operations metrics, investment banking, DCF, multi-statement models, sensitivity/scenario models, or source-backed financial filing analysis: templates/financial_models.md
• Healthcare, clinical, patient, medical, hospital, staffing, care delivery, or healthcare administration workbooks: templates/healthcare.md
• Marketing, advertising, campaign, funnel, lead, CRM, growth, attribution, ROI, or web/ad performance workbooks: templates/marketing_advertising.md
• Scientific research, experiments, lab measurements, surveys, statistical analysis, reproducibility, protocol, or raw/processed research data workbooks: templates/scientific_research.md

Read all templates that clearly apply. Do not load domain templates for unrelated routine, lightweight, or basic formatting/editing tasks unless the user explicitly asks.

Only add Checks sheets for models where correctness depends on linked calculations, source reconciliation, or financial statement/model integrity.

General Rules

• Start meaningful edits quickly; avoid long upfront API exploration.
• Core APIs are listed in the API reference section below. Use them.
• If these skill instructions are already loaded in context, do not spend a shell turn re-reading this SKILL.md from disk. Move directly to the prompt, attachments, and workbook build.
• For workbook with multiple tabs/sheets, create/populate non-formula inputs/tables and sheets prior to populating cross-sheet formulas.

Approach for quickly building a new spreadsheet

1. Setup: import @oai/artifact-tool, create workbook/sheets for new files.
2. Build quickly: bulk-write headers/data/formulas; then formatting/validation/conditional formatting; add charts/tables only when needed.
3. Use additional focused calls if helpful for streamed progress.
4. Near completion: inspect key ranges, scan formula errors, render all the sheets and verify, run a validation pass
5. Export .xlsx

Making edits on a spreadsheet

If a user asks to edit or add to an existing spreadsheet:

• For visual fix requests, start with the smallest plausible local change rather than applying sheet-wide autofit, wrapping, or restyling.
• When making edits, ensure existing formulas and patterns are consistent. For example, if asked to add another column or row to a table and there is conditional formatting applied to the whole table, it should extend to the new column or rows as well.
• If specific cells/rows/columns are specified in prompt, limit edits to those ranges unless a broader change is clearly necessary. The exceptions are when other parts of the spreadsheet depend on them, e.g. if there's a dynamic chart that is based on the range of values in a table and a new row is added, the chart should include that new row. Another example is if conditional formatting was already set for a table from A1:C5, and you add a new column D, the conditional formatting should be updated (or deleted and re-created) to cover A1:D5.
• For column resizing, avoid autofitting by default: instead, inspect only relevant data range, measure the longest text entry in that range, and set columnWidthPx to an estimated width based on text length (with a reasonable min/max cap). Use autofit only when the user explicitly asks for it.

Handling queries and questions

• The user may ask questions about the sheet instead of requesting an edit or a change. Simply answer those questions about the spreadsheet based on the context available rather than making an edit the user didn't intend for. You can use inspect to learn more or directly read values/formulas/tables etc via accessor methods.

Error Recovery

On first error:

1. Read error text.
2. Run one targeted workbook.help("<exact_api>") query only if needed.
3. Retry with minimal patch (not full rewrite).
4. Continue from existing workbook state.

Do not loop indefinitely on similar failures.

Quality Guidelines

• Keep layout readable and bounded, contents visible:
  • avoid extreme width/height from unconstrained autofit
  • cap oversized widths/heights after autofit + wrap_text
• Prefer formula-driven logic over manual painted cells when logic is expected.
• Derived values must be formulas (not hardcoded) and legible.
• Use absolute/relative references correctly for fill/copy behavior.
• Do not use magic numbers in formulas; reference cells (e.g. =H6*(1+$B$3)).
• Blank editable templates must look blank/neutral before user data is entered. Count, ranking, best/worst, IRR/RATE/XIRR, variance, and status formulas should guard on required input cells and return "", 0, or a clear "No entries yet" state as appropriate. Alternatively, prefill with a few rows of example data.
• Include at least one visual summary for tracker/planning requests when appropriate (KPI block, chart, dashboard area).
• For dashboard, visualization, chart-ready analysis, budget/reporting, trend, schedule/timeline, and KPI prompts with plottable data, include at least one native Excel chart unless a verified export failure remains after simplifying the chart. Do not silently replace all charts with styled tables.
• For presentation-ready analytical workbooks, plain range formatting alone is usually not enough. Prefer real Excel structures where useful: tables, freeze panes, filters, data validation, conditional formats, and at least one chart/KPI/dashboard visual when the prompt implies summary analysis.
• In rendered previews of dashboards and summary sheets, check financial values and row labels at normal zoom. Widen columns, adjust row heights, or move chart panels until important numbers and text are not clipped, awkwardly wrapped, or hidden.

Completion Criteria

Complete only when:

• Workbook content is populated and formulas compute.
• No obvious formula errors in key scanned ranges (no bad refs/off-by-one/circular errors).
• .xlsx saved to outputs/<unique_thread_id>/.
• Layout is organized, legible, and aligned to request style (or default formatting baseline).

Verification Rules

Before final response, verify values/formulas and visual quality.

1. Inspect key ranges:

const check = await workbook.inspect({
  kind: "table",
  range: "Dashboard!A1:H20",
  include: "values,formulas",
  tableMaxRows: 20,
  tableMaxCols: 12,
});
console.log(check.ndjson);

Inspect targeting:

• Prefer sheet-qualified ranges ("Sheet!A1:H20") or sheetId.

2. Scan formula errors:

const errors = await workbook.inspect({
  kind: "match",
  searchTerm: "#REF!|#DIV/0!|#VALUE!|#NAME\\?|#N/A",
  options: { useRegex: true, maxResults: 300 },
  summary: "final formula error scan",
});
console.log(errors.ndjson);

3. Render sheets/ranges to verify visual output (skip if already verified and no style changes):

const blob = await workbook.render({ sheetName: "Sheet1", range: "A1:H20", scale: 2 });

Make sure you do at least one visual pass of all the sheets in the workbook before the final export.

Visual requirements:

• Fix severe defects before finalizing: blank/broken charts, clipped key headers or numbers, unreadable colors, obvious formula errors, default blank sheets, or content outside the visible working area.
• Ensure logical labels or titles appear once, texts are all clearly visible, and merged ranges exist where labels or content intentionally span multiple columns.
• Do one focused visual repair pass after the initial render. Do not spend additional passes on minor polish once the workbook is correct, legible, and exported; note any minor limitation briefly and finalize.

4. Keep verification compact:

• Inspect key ranges.
• Avoid huge NDJSON dumps.

5. Export:

await fs.mkdir(outputDir, { recursive: true });
const output = await SpreadsheetFile.exportXlsx(workbook);
await output.save(`${outputDir}/output.xlsx`);

6. Finalize immediately after successful export + compact verification.

• Do not export extra .xlsx variants unless asked.
• Do not keep iterating on alternate designs once requirements are met, unless asked.

Source, PDF, and Attachment Processing

• Use bundled runtime libraries for source extraction. For PDF or 10-K/10-Q style inputs, read PDF via bundled Python pypdf when available, then use one small structured extraction script to collect all required facts into a dict/JSON object. Avoid many ad hoc rg/sed passes over the same text.
• Keep source notes compact: record file name, section/table label, and enough context to audit the number. Do not paste large PDF excerpts into the workbook unless requested.
• Bundled Python libraries available for extraction/analysis include pandas, numpy, pypdf, python-docx, and reportlab.
• Bundled JS libraries available for document/PDF work include docx, pdf-lib, and pdfjs-dist.

Using artifact_tool APIs (JavaScript)

Library version: 2.8.3

Required Imports + Startup

Import existing workbook only when needed:

import { FileBlob, SpreadsheetFile } from "@oai/artifact-tool";

const input = await FileBlob.load("path/to/input.xlsx");
const workbook = await SpreadsheetFile.importXlsx(input);

Import CSV text directly when the source or intermediate data is CSV:

import fs from "node:fs/promises";
import { Workbook } from "@oai/artifact-tool";

const csvText = await fs.readFile("path/to/input.csv", "utf8");
const workbook = await Workbook.fromCSV(csvText, { sheetName: "Sheet1" });

Prefer Workbook.fromCSV(...) over hand-parsing CSV rows; clean or analyze CSV with Python/Node first only when needed.

Create new workbook:

import fs from "node:fs/promises";
import { SpreadsheetFile, Workbook } from "@oai/artifact-tool";

const workbook = Workbook.create();
const sheet = workbook.worksheets.add("Inputs");

Final export:

await fs.mkdir(outputDir, { recursive: true });
const output = await SpreadsheetFile.exportXlsx(workbook);
await output.save(`${outputDir}/output.xlsx`);

Build Patterns

• Prefer block writes (range.values, range.formulas) over per-cell loops. Matrix shape must match the target range (for example "D4:M4" should be a 1x10 matrix, row x col).
• Seed scalar formulas once, then fillDown() / fillRight(). For dynamic-array formulas (SEQUENCE, UNIQUE, FILTER, SORT, VSTACK, HSTACK), write only the anchor cell and let the result spill after.
• Use range.displayFormulas plus range.formulaInfos when you need to understand a spill child or a data-table output cell.
• You do not need to call recalculate; calculation automatically happens.
• Date handling:
  • Prefer real Date objects for sortable/charted/formula date columns.
  • Apply date formats explicitly (for example yyyy-mm-dd).
• Use JSON-serializable values for non-Date cells: string | number | boolean | null.
• If a cell is intended to display literal text that begins with =, write it as a value prefixed with a single quote (for example '=B2*C2). This includes formula descriptions, validation examples, and labels; do not write these cells through range.formulas.
• Create every worksheet referenced by formulas before writing any cross-sheet formulas.
• When rebuilding dashboards, delete drawings first with sheet.deleteAllDrawings(). range.clear() does not remove charts, shapes, or images.
• Verify with await workbook.inspect(...); use workbook.help(...) only when the quick surface below is insufficient.

Conventions

• Use camelCase API names and option keys.
• Cell/range addressing: A1 notation (sheet.getRange("A1:C10")).
• Drawing anchors (sheet.charts, sheet.shapes, sheet.images): 0-based { row, col }.
• Drawing offsets/extents use pixels (rowOffsetPx, colOffsetPx, widthPx, heightPx).

API Discovery Policy (Strict)

• Use this quick API surface first.
• Over 440 Excel formulas are supported, covering the most common ones. Use workbook.help in the way described below to browse families of formulas or to lookup a specific formula.
• Use workbook.help(...) only when blocked by uncertainty.
• For help queries, start with exact feature/path lookups (chart, worksheet.getRange, worksheet.freezePanes, range.dataValidation, chart.series.add). If an exact path fails, one broader wildcard search is allowed.
• Do not repeat semantically similar help queries.
• If one help query returns 0 matches, reformulate once, then proceed best-effort.
• render can be used to examine an existing workbook visually and for visual verifications.

Supported Formulas

• To check if the exact Excel formula is supported, or to see how it's used, use fx.<formula>: workbook.help("fx.PMT", { include: "index,examples,notes", maxChars: 3000 }).
• To browse a family of formulas, use fx.* with a category regex. Useful categories: financial, math-trig, statistical, lookup-reference, logical, text, date-time, information, engineering, database.
• For intent-based lookup, use a short natural query plus a narrow search regex of likely functions.
• Keep maxChars bounded; if results are noisy, narrow search rather than issuing many similar queries.

Useful help calls:

console.log(workbook.help("shape.add", { include: "examples,notes" }).ndjson);
console.log(
  workbook.help("*", {
    search: "fill|borders|autofit",
    include: "index,examples,notes",
    maxChars: 6000,
  }).ndjson,
);
console.log(workbook.help("fx.PMT", { include: "index,examples,notes" }).ndjson);
console.log(workbook.help("fx.*", { search: "financial", include: "index,examples", maxChars: 4000 }).ndjson);
console.log(workbook.help("fx.*", { search: "math-trig", include: "index,examples", maxChars: 4000 }).ndjson);
console.log(workbook.help("lookup with fallback", { search: "XLOOKUP|INDEX|MATCH|IFERROR", include: "index,examples,notes", maxChars: 4000 }).ndjson);

Reading existing/imported workbooks

• On existing/imported workbooks, get a compact summary via inspect to understand what already exists and where.
• Prefer inspect(...) for workbook understanding and discovery across broad areas.
• Prefer direct getters like range.formulas when you already know the target range and need the exact rectangular formula matrix.
• If formula locations are unknown, prefer inspect({ kind: "formula", ... }) over reading range.formulas across a very large area.
• Prefer to set maxChars, tableMaxRows, tableMaxCols, and/or maxResults to prevent large dumps of data.
• For suspicious or high-impact outputs, use workbook.trace("Sheet!A1") to audit the dependency tree from final output/check cell back to source cells. Trace output can be large, so summarize by depth/node count before logging.

Inspect for workbook understanding

• Compact summary:

await wb.inspect({
  kind: "workbook,sheet,table",
  maxChars: 6000,
  tableMaxRows: 6,
  tableMaxCols: 6,
  tableMaxCellChars: 80,
});

• Quick overview of sheet ids and names: await wb.inspect({ kind: "sheet", include: "id,name" })
• Formula discovery in a targeted area: await wb.inspect({ kind: "formula", sheetId: firstSheetName, range: "A1:Z30", maxChars: 2500, options: {maxResults:50} })
• Checking existing styles in a targeted area: await wb.inspect({ kind: "computedStyle", sheetId: firstSheetName, range: "A1:E10", maxChars: 2500 })
• Common kind tokens: workbook, sheet, table, region, match, formula, thread, computedStyle, definedName, drawing
• Inspects can also be used to zoom in on specific areas, especially for target edits:

await wb.inspect({
  kind: "region",
  sheetId: firstSheetName,
  range: "A1:Z30",
  maxChars: 2500,
});

• Inspect output may include JSON records with "id" values (for example "ws/r5qsk5"), which you can resolve back to workbook objects with wb.resolve(...):
• wb.resolve("ws/...") -> worksheet
• wb.resolve("th/...") -> comment thread

Additional feature-specific notes

Merging cells

• Merging cells is useful for visual headers, title bands, note/source blocks, and other multi-cell labels that span columns.
• If you plan to set a range of cells to a single value, consider merging those cells first.
• range.merge() merges the target range into one cell; range.merge(true) merges across each row in the target range.
• range.unmerge() reverses a merge. For example:

const range = sheet.getRange("I23:N24");
range.merge();
range.values = [["Source note spanning the recommendation panel"]];

Known Gotchas (Do not repeat)

• Do not set undocumented attributes on remote objects.
• Workbook.create() starts with no sheets; add one before calling getActiveWorksheet().
• If a formula appears unsupported use an alternate equivalent.
• Use matrix sizes that match target ranges unless you intentionally spill.
• Create every worksheet referenced by formulas before writing cross-sheet formulas.
• Avoid full-column formula references such as A:A, $A:$A, or Sheet!B:B. Prefer bounded ranges sized to the editable table, e.g. $A$6:$A$205, especially inside COUNTIFS, SUMIFS, INDEX, and lookup formulas.
• If a formula appears unsupported, use an alternate equivalent.
• If export fails, isolate the cause by checkpoint-export after major blocks to isolate the cause: base sheets, values/formulas, formatting, conditional formatting, tables, charts/rendering. For charts, first simplify optional styling first: nested border configs, custom chart axis/series mutations, broad autofit/formatting, then nonessential drawings.

Quick API Surface (High-Value + Common)

Core workbook/file APIs

• import { FileBlob, SpreadsheetFile, Workbook } from "@oai/artifact-tool"
• const workbook = Workbook.create(); const sheet = workbook.worksheets.add("Sheet1")
• const workbook = await SpreadsheetFile.importXlsx(arrayBufferOrFileBlob)
• const xlsx = await SpreadsheetFile.exportXlsx(workbook); await xlsx.save("output.xlsx")
• const inspect = await workbook.inspect({ kind: "sheet", include: "id,name", sheetId, range: "A1:C10" })
• const help = workbook.help("worksheet.getRange", { include: "index,examples" })
• Preferred: const blob = await workbook.render({ sheetName: "Sheet1", autoCrop: "all", scale: 1, format: "png" })
• To get the bytes and/or save the blob to file:

const previewBytes = new Uint8Array(await preview.arrayBuffer());
await fs.writeFile(`${outputDir}/preview.png`, previewBytes);

• const workbook = await Workbook.fromCSV(csvText, { sheetName: "Sheet1" })
• await workbook.fromCSV(csvText, { sheetName: "ImportedData" })

Worksheet selection/creation

• workbook.worksheets.add(name)
• workbook.worksheets.getItem(name)
• workbook.worksheets.getOrAdd(name, { renameFirstIfOnlyNewSpreadsheet: true })
• workbook.worksheets.getItemAt(index)
• workbook.worksheets.getActiveWorksheet() (only after at least one sheet exists)

Worksheet operations

• sheet.getRange("A1:C10"), sheet.getRangeByIndexes(startRow, startCol, rowCount, colCount), sheet.getCell(row, col)
• sheet.getUsedRange(valuesOnly?)
• sheet.mergeCells("A1:C1"), sheet.unmergeCells("A1:C1")
• sheet.freezePanes.freezeRows(1), sheet.freezePanes.freezeColumns(2), sheet.freezePanes.unfreeze()
• sheet.tables, sheet.charts, sheet.sparklineGroups (sheet.sparklines alias), sheet.shapes, sheet.images
• sheet.showGridLines = false
• sheet.dataTables, sheet.conditionalFormattings, sheet.dataValidations
• sheet.deleteAllDrawings() removes charts, shapes, and images before a dashboard rebuild.

Range values/formulas

• const range = sheet.getRange("A1:C10")
• range.values = [[...], ...] (2D matrix of values)
• range.formulas = [["=..."], ...]
• range.formulasR1C1 = [["=RC[-1]*2"]]
• To read: range.values / range.formulas / range.displayFormulas / range.formulaInfos (for spill/array formulas)
• range.write(matrixOrPayload) (auto-sizes/spills from anchor as needed)
• range.writeValues(matrixOrRows)
• range.fillDown(), range.fillRight()
  • sheet.getRange("D2").formulas = [["=..."]]
  • sheet.getRange("D2:D200").fillDown()
• range.clear({ applyTo: "contents" | "formats" | "all" })
• range.copyFrom(sourceRange, "values" | "formulas" | "all") source and destination must have the same shape
• range.copyTo(destRange, "values" | "formulas" | "all")
• range.offset(...), range.resize(...), range.getCurrentRegion(), range.getRow(i), range.getColumn(j)
• range.getRangeByIndexes(...), range.getCell(...)
• range.merge(), range.merge(true) to merge across, range.unmerge()

Formatting

• range.format supports fill, font, numberFormat, borders, alignments, wrapText
• range.format.autofitColumns(), range.format.autofitRows()
• Excel unit sizing: range.format.columnWidth = 18, range.format.rowHeight = 24
• Pixel sizing: range.format.columnWidthPx = 120, range.format.rowHeightPx = 24
• range.setNumberFormat("yyyy-mm-dd")
• range.format.numberFormat = [["0"], ["0.00"], ["@"]]
• Borders: There are two ways to set borders on a range (1) simple form (2) per edge form. Example:

// (1) Preferred simple form
// `preset` can be "none" | "outside" | "inside" | "all" | "doubleBottom"
// "outside" will just set borders on the outside edges of the range.
// `style` are Excel/OpenXML-style names such as "thin", "medium", "thick", "dashed", and "dotted".
range.format.borders = { preset: "all", style: "thin", color: "#D9D9D9" };

// (2) Per-edge form. Use top/bottom/left/right, not edgeTop/edgeBottom/etc.
// Format: {style?: string; color?: ColorConfig; weight?: number;}
// Prefer setting `style` over `weight` unless you want granular control.
range.format.borders = {
  insideHorizontal: { style: "thin", color: "#D9D9D9" },
  insideVertical: { style: "medium", color: "#D9D9D9" },
  top: { style: "thick", color: "#D9D9D9" },
  bottom: { style: "dashed", color: "#D9D9D9" },
  left: { style: "dotted", color: "#D9D9D9" },
  right: { style: "thin", color: "#D9D9D9" },
};

Data Validation

• range.dataValidation = { rule: { type: "list", formula1: "Categories!$A$2:$A$4" } }
• range.dataValidation = { rule: { type: "list", values: ["Not Started", "In Progress"] } }
• sheet.dataValidations.add({ range: "B2:B100", rule: { type: "whole", operator: "between", formula1: 1, formula2: 10 } })

Conditional formatting

• Use range.conditionalFormats.add(ruleType, ConditionalFormatConfig);.
• Use range.conditionalFormats.add(ruleType, {operator, formula, format});. Choose ruleType, operator, color, and style strings from the inline types below.

type ConditionalFormatRuleType =
  | "cellIs" | "CellValue" | "Custom" | "expression"
  | "colorScale" | "dataBar" | "iconSet"
  | "containsText" | "notContainsText" | "beginsWith" | "endsWith"
  | "containsBlanks" | "notContainsBlanks" | "containsErrors" | "notContainsErrors"
  | "duplicateValues" | "uniqueValues" | "timePeriod" | "top10" | "aboveAverage";

type CellIsOperator =
  | "greaterThan"
  | "greaterThanOrEqual"
  | "lessThan"
  | "lessThanOrEqual"
  | "equal"
  | "notEqual"
  | "between"
  | "notBetween";

type ConditionalFormatConfig =
  | { operator: CellIsOperator; formula: string | number | Array<string | number>; format?: DifferentialFormatConfig }
  | { formula: string | number; format?: DifferentialFormatConfig }
  | { colors?: ColorConfig[]; thresholds?: CfvoInput[] }
  | { color?: ColorConfig; thresholds?: CfvoInput[]; gradient?: boolean }
  | { iconSet: string; showValue?: boolean; reverse?: boolean; thresholds?: CfvoInput[] }
  | { text: string; format?: DifferentialFormatConfig }
  | { timePeriod: "yesterday" | "today" | "tomorrow" | "last7Days" | "lastWeek" | "thisWeek" | "nextWeek" | "lastMonth" | "thisMonth" | "nextMonth"; format?: DifferentialFormatConfig }
  | { rank?: number; percent?: boolean; bottom?: boolean; format?: DifferentialFormatConfig }
  | { aboveAverage?: boolean; equalAverage?: boolean; stdDev?: number; format?: DifferentialFormatConfig };

type DifferentialFormatConfig = {
  fill?: FillConfig;
  font?: { bold?: boolean; italic?: boolean; color?: ColorConfig };
  border?: RangeBordersConfig;
  numberFormat?: string;
};

type CfvoInput =
  | "min"
  | "max"
  | number
  | `${number}%`
  | { type: "min" | "max" | "num" | "percent" | "percentile"; value?: string | number };

• Rule types (ConditionalFormatRuleType): "cellIs" | "CellValue" | "Custom" | "expression" | "colorScale" | "dataBar" | "iconSet" | "containsText" | "notContainsText" | "beginsWith" | "endsWith" | "containsBlanks" | "notContainsBlanks" | "containsErrors" | "notContainsErrors" | "duplicateValues" | "uniqueValues" | "timePeriod" | "top10" | "aboveAverage";
• Built-in iconSet names: 3Arrows, 3Triangles, 4Arrows, 5Arrows, 3ArrowsGray, 4ArrowsGray, 5ArrowsGray, 3TrafficLights1, 3Signs, 4RedToBlack, 3TrafficLights2, 4TrafficLights, 3Symbols, 3Flags, 3Symbols2, 3Stars, 5Quarters, 5Boxes, 4Rating, 5Rating.
• Custom conditional formatting: range.conditionalFormats.addCustom(expression, {fill, font, border});
• range.conditionalFormats.deleteAll() / range.conditionalFormats.clear()

const grid = sheet.getRange("B2:J10");
grid.conditionalFormats.add("colorScale", {
  criteria: [
    { type: "lowestValue", color: "#2563EB" },
    { type: "percentile", value: 50, color: "#FDE047" },
    { type: "highestValue", color: "#DC2626" },
  ],
});

Tables

• When adding new tables, set explicit unique names (TasksTable, SummaryTable).
• You cannot have multiple tables over the same range. Before adding a table on an existing/imported workbook, confirm the target range does not already overlap an existing table. Prefer the initial compact inspect summary over a separate tables-only scan when available.
• const table = sheet.tables.add("A1:H200", true, "TasksTable")
• table.rows.add(null, [[...], ...]), table.getDataRows(), table.getHeaderRowRange()
• Read tables: sheet.tables.items -> Table[]
• Set + Getters: table.name, table.style, table.style, table.showHeaders
• Toggles for table utilities (set/get): table.showTotals, table.showBandedColumns = true, table.showFilterButton
• table.delete()

Images

• sheet.images.add({dataUrl: "data:image/png;base64,...", anchor: {from: { row: 1, col: 2 }, extent: { widthPx: 160, heightPx: 120 }}})

Threaded Comments

Follow this exact API when adding a note or comment:

• Required: First, always first call set_self to create an author workbook.comments.setSelf({"displayName": "ChatGPT"})
• Create a new thread with a single comment: const thread = workbook.comments.addThread({"cell": sheet.getRange("E2")}, "Source: <website>")
• To reply to a threaded comment: thread.addReply("This is a reply to the comment")
• To resolve/re-open a thread: thread.resolve(), thread.reopen()

Charts

• When adding or moving charts, do not cover existing data. Put charts in a reserved rectangle with blank gutter columns/rows around the chart area.
• If chart data comes from editable/source data, ensure data/series is formula-backed instead of literal values.
• Fast chart path: If you already have a continuous range with text categories and one column per series, directly chart that range via sheet.charts.add(chartType, range):

sheet.getRange("F4:H7").values = [
  ["Month", "Revenue", "EBITDA"],
  ["Jan", 100, 10],
  ["Feb", 120, 18],
  ["Mar", 130, 22],
];
const chart = sheet.charts.add("line", sheet.getRange("F4:H7"));

Setting a range will auto-populate series information (series.formula, series.categoryFormula) with A1 range-reference strings internally. The first column is treated as categories (x-axis labels) and remaining columns are treated as series values (one series per column). First row will only be treated as headers if it's text and not numeric.

• For advanced chart creation where you might want to define each series, you can do the following:

const chartConfig = {
  chartType: "bar",
  title: "Scores By Person",
  hasLegend: true,
}; // type WorksheetChartConfig
const chart = sheet.charts.add("bar", chartConfig);
// Add series
const series = chart.series.add("Scores");
series.categoryFormula = "'Scores'!$A$2:$A$10"; // string
series.formula = "'Scores'!$E$2:$E$10"; // string
series.fill = "#F472B6";

• After creating a chart with data, specify position, title, axis via the following:

chart.setPosition("J4", "Q20");
chart.title = "Revenue and EBITDA Trend";
chart.titleTextStyle.fontSize = 12;
chart.hasLegend = true;
chart.xAxis = { axisType: "textAxis" };
chart.yAxis = { numberFormatCode: "$#,##0" };

• To manually set the chart's source range, use chart.setData(range), which replaces all existing chart data/series.
• To read about a chart, the following fields exist on the Chart object: type, title, categories. To read all series: chart.series.items
• If using compat positioning, always set position: chart.setPosition("F2", "M20").
• sheet.charts.getItemOrNullObject("Chart 1"), sheet.charts.deleteAll()
• To update x/y-axis, prefer compact config assignments such as chart.xAxis = { axisType: "textAxis", tickLabelInterval: 2 } and chart.yAxis = { numberFormatCode: "$#,##0" }. These help legibility and visibility.
• For month/date x-axes, prefer a chart helper range with text labels such as Jan 2025 or 2025-01. Do not rely on date axis number formats alone; rendered previews can show Excel serial numbers.
• Chart types: "bar" | "line" | "area" | "pie" | "doughnut" | "scatter" | "bubble" | "radar" | "stock" | "treemap" | "sunburst" | "histogram" | "boxWhisker" | "waterfall" | "funnel" | "map".

Sparklines

const group = sheet.sparklineGroups.add({
  type,
  targetRange,
  sourceData,
  dateAxisRange,
  seriesColor,
  negativeColor,
  markers,
  axis,
  lineWeight,
  displayEmptyCellsAs,
  displayHidden,
});

• Sparkline type is a string. Empty-cell display mode and axis min/max modes are proto enum numbers on the current facade; inspect nearby tests before setting them directly.
• Sparkline Inline Type:

type SparklineConfig = {
  type: "line" | "column" | "stacked";
  targetRange: Range | string;
  sourceData: Range | string;
  dateAxisRange?: Range | string;
  lineWeight?: number;
  displayHidden?: boolean;
  seriesColor?: ColorConfig;
  negativeColor?: ColorConfig;
  axisColor?: ColorConfig;
  markersColor?: ColorConfig;
  firstMarkerColor?: ColorConfig;
  lastMarkerColor?: ColorConfig;
  highMarkerColor?: ColorConfig;
  lowMarkerColor?: ColorConfig;
  markers?: SparklineMarkersOptions;
  axis?: SparklineAxisOptions;
};

type SparklineMarkersOptions = {
  show?: boolean;
  high?: boolean;
  low?: boolean;
  first?: boolean;
  last?: boolean;
  negative?: boolean;
};

type SparklineAxisOptions = {
  showAxis?: boolean;
  manualMin?: number;
  manualMax?: number;
  rightToLeft?: boolean;
};

• Range Alias: const group = targetRange.sparklines.add(type, sourceRange, sparklineConfig);
• Edit And Delete

group.seriesColor = colorConfig;
group.markers = markerConfig;
group.axis = axisConfig;
group.delete();
sheet.sparklineGroups.deleteAll();

Help / Grep

Use workbook.help(...) primarily for obscure/advanced surfaces (for example deep chart axis settings, unusual drawing configs, pivot APIs, or uncommon option schemas).

• workbook.help("enum.ShapeGeometry", { include: "index,notes" }).ndjson
• workbook.help("enum.*", { search: "ShapeGeometry|LineStyle", include: "index" }).ndjson
• workbook.help("shape.add", { include: "examples,notes" }).ndjson
• workbook.help("fx.RATE", { include: "index,examples,notes" }).ndjson
• workbook.help("cash flow return rate", { search: "IRR|XIRR|NPV|XNPV", include: "index,examples,notes", maxChars: 4000 }).ndjson
• workbook.help("*", { search: "fill|borders|autofit", include: "index,examples,notes", maxChars: 6000 }).ndjson

Trace

For tracing the full tree of how a formula is calculated, workbook.trace("Sheet!A1") is available. For complex formulas, the full tree can be extremely large, so output should be capped or outputted to a separate temp file (never dump raw traces). It takes only a cell reference.

JavaScript example snippet (runnable)

import fs from "node:fs/promises";
import { SpreadsheetFile, Workbook } from "@oai/artifact-tool";

const outputDir = "output";
await fs.mkdir(outputDir, { recursive: true });

const workbook = Workbook.create();
const sheet = workbook.worksheets.add("Summary");

sheet.getRange("A1:C4").values = [
  ["Month", "Revenue", "EBITDA"],
  ["Jan", 100, 10],
  ["Feb", 120, 18],
  ["Mar", 130, 22],
];
sheet.getRange("D1").values = [["Margin"]];
sheet.getRange("D2").formulas = [["=C2/B2"]];
sheet.getRange("D2:D4").fillDown();

sheet.getRange("A1:D1").format = {
  fill: "#0F766E",
  font: { bold: true, color: "#FFFFFF" },
};
sheet.getRange("B2:C4").format.numberFormat = "$#,##0";
sheet.getRange("D2:D4").format.numberFormat = "0.0%";

// Helper range links to source cells so edits update the chart.
sheet.getRange("F1:G1").values = [["Month", "Revenue"]];
sheet.getRange("F2:G2").formulas = [["=A2", "=B2"]];
sheet.getRange("F2:G4").fillDown();
const chart = sheet.charts.add("line", sheet.getRange("F1:G4"));
chart.title = "Revenue Trend";
chart.hasLegend = false;
chart.xAxis = { axisType: "textAxis" };
chart.yAxis = { numberFormatCode: "$#,##0" };
chart.setPosition("I1", "P15");

const preview = await workbook.render({
  sheetName: "Summary",
  autoCrop: "all",
  scale: 1,
  format: "png",
});
await fs.writeFile(`${outputDir}/summary.png`, new Uint8Array(await preview.arrayBuffer()));

const xlsx = await SpreadsheetFile.exportXlsx(workbook);
await xlsx.save(`${outputDir}/summary.xlsx`);