The beginner's guide to Gemini at work
Your team logs work in a Google Sheet and someone wants weekly totals by Monday. Gemini in Sheets can add the formulas for you; the check is whether they cover every row.
What does your job involve?
Five Gemini jobs, mostly inside Docs, Sheets and Slides. Each card says where to start, what your plan needs, a prompt to use and the check that matters. For images, see the ChatGPT guide's image cards.
Open a task to see where to start, the access to check, a prompt to use and what to check in the result.
Build or edit a Google Sheets report Gemini in Sheets
Use the spreadsheet itself as the destination for AI-assisted work.
- Where to start
- Open a native Google Sheet on a computer and select Ask Gemini at the top right. For a whole new sheet, the side panel opens with Build; review its plan before you accept it.
- Access to check
- An eligible Workspace or Google AI plan with Gemini in Sheets turned on. Convert an Excel file with File › Save as Google Sheets first.
- Bring this
- A practice copy, column definitions, units and expected totals.
Try this in Gemini
Plan a report in this sheet from [source range]. Keep the raw data unchanged. Add a summary with formulas, units and a flag for any missing figure. Show the ranges each formula uses and test [known-answer case] before I use it. Do not replace a missing figure with zero.Why this request helps: A source range and plan narrow real changes; known answers make formulas inspectable.
Check before using it: Read each formula's range, then change the last value in a range and check the total moves.
If this route is missing: Ask the Gemini app to explain a small table, then build the formulas yourself.
Create an editable Google Slides deck Gemini in Slides
Draft the deck in the app where you will refine it.
- Where to start
- In Slides on a computer, choose Presentation on the start screen (or Ask Gemini in a blank deck), describe the deck, use Add sources to pick the file from Drive, then review the plan before Approve.
- Access to check
- An eligible Workspace or Google AI plan; desktop only and English only for now.
- Bring this
- Audience, decision, the source document and the theme to match.
Try this in Gemini
Create an editable five-slide presentation for [audience] from [source]. Lead with [decision]. Keep proposed plans labelled, keep every figure exactly as in the source and include a limitations slide. Keep the existing theme and all text editable.Why this request helps: An outline review checks the argument before visual polish makes it convincing.
Check before using it: Click through every slide; check each figure against the source and that the text is editable.
If this route is missing: Ask for a slide outline with a source for each point, then build it yourself.
Write or improve a Google Doc Gemini in Docs
Improve writing inside the document colleagues already use.
- Where to start
- Open the document, select the section and use Gemini from the side panel or the selected-text option.
- Access to check
- Gemini in Docs eligibility and administrator settings.
- Bring this
- The section, reader and facts/conditions to preserve.
Try this in Gemini
Rewrite only [section] for [reader] in plain language. Keep dates, amounts, conditions and exceptions. Make the next action clear. Do not add new facts; list missing information separately and leave other sections unchanged.Why this request helps: The selected scope helps you inspect a meaningful revision instead of reviewing an entire new document.
Check before using it: Compare conditions and commitments with the original, then read the saved document.
If this route is missing: Paste the section into the Gemini app and copy the checked revision back yourself.
Explain a spreadsheet or file Gemini Apps → Add files
Understand a file before turning it into a business conclusion.
- Where to start
- In the Gemini app, attach the file with Add files and name the page, sheet or section you mean.
- Access to check
- Uploads supported in the active account and within its limits.
- Bring this
- Data/source, units, measure definitions and a question.
Try this in Gemini
Explain [question] using [file, sheet or section]. Show the relevant figures and how one important total is calculated. Separate what the data shows from possible causes. Flag anything unreadable or missing, and do not say the whole file was checked.Why this request helps: Specific source scope gives the reader an answer they can trace and verify.
Check before using it: Recalculate the total it explained and check the source's definitions and exclusions.
If this route is missing: Paste a small extract and narrow the question.
Make an editable Canvas document or prototype Gemini Apps → Canvas
Create something you can revise rather than only discuss.
- Where to start
- At gemini.google.com, select the Add files icon below the text box, then Canvas, and describe one small result.
- Access to check
- Canvas available; supported exports and sharing vary.
- Bring this
- Checked facts or a rule, and where the result will be used.
Try this in Gemini
Create a Canvas [document or prototype] for [purpose] using these facts. Keep factual text editable. For a prototype, use only the sample data here, show its limits and avoid live transactions or external calls. Explain what works and what is a mock-up.Why this request helps: Naming the output separates an editable draft from a working business integration.
Check before using it: Read the text, try every input and route on a narrow screen and with a keyboard, then check the export.
If this route is missing: Ask for an outline or a static diagram and use your usual editor.
Know what you have
Gemini: the feature map
Use this map to distinguish a reply, an editable output and an action in another app. Availability depends on the signed-in account, enabled features and the specific operation.
| Feature | Useful for | Where | Access / limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gemini Apps | Questions, drafts and file explanations | gemini.google.com | Account eligibility and limits |
| Docs | Writing in the actual document | Gemini side panel in Docs | Eligible plan and admin settings |
| Sheets | Tables, formulas and spreadsheet changes | Ask Gemini › side panel, or Build | Eligible plan, native Sheets, computer only for edits |
| Slides | Editable presentation drafts | Presentation on the start screen, or Ask Gemini | Eligible plan; desktop and English only |
| Canvas | Editable documents and small apps | Gemini app › Canvas | Export and sharing options vary |
| Files | Explain and compare supplied material | Add files in the Gemini app | Supported formats and account limits |
Find out what your account can use
- Check the Google account picture: a personal account and your work account can have different access and data settings.
- Ask your administrator which Workspace edition and Gemini features you have; the Gemini app and Gemini inside Docs, Sheets and Slides are switched on separately.
- Open the document, sheet or deck and look for Ask Gemini at the top right.
- For uploads and Canvas, check the Gemini app separately, and read the result in the file itself.
If an editor feature is missing, paste a short extract into the Gemini app and apply the checked result yourself. Don't switch to a personal account to make a tutorial match.
Ask your administrator:
Which Google account should I use for Gemini at work? Please confirm whether Gemini in Docs, Sheets and Slides is on for my account as well as the Gemini app, which information I may use with it, and who agrees new access. I want to try [specific task and file] with the access we already have.What you'll make
weekly totals added to a Google Sheet by Gemini, as formulas you have checked by changing a value.
What you'll need
your work Google account on a Workspace or Google AI plan that includes Gemini in Sheets, a computer (the phone app can’t edit sheets), and a small log in a native Google Sheet. To practise, paste the fictional log from the worked example. About ten minutes.
Example result.
| Week | Formula | Tickets closed |
|---|---|---|
| Week of 5 Oct | =SUM(C2:C6) |
77 |
| Week of 12 Oct | =SUM(C7:C11) |
78 |
1. Open the sheet in your work account
Open the sheet and check the account picture in the top right: a personal account and your work account can have different Gemini access and data settings. If the file is an Excel .xlsx, choose File › Save as Google Sheets first; Gemini works best on native sheets.
Why this works: Gemini in Sheets is a separate feature from the Gemini chat app. Being able to open the chat doesn’t prove the spreadsheet feature is on for your account.
What you should see: an Ask Gemini button at the top right of the sheet. If it isn’t there, your plan or administrator hasn’t enabled it; use the chat fallback in the task cards.
2. Ask Gemini to add the totals
Select Ask Gemini to open the side panel, then ask:
This sheet logs [measure] per day in column [column], with the week
in column B. Add a small table below the data with one row per week
and a SUM formula for each week's total. Use formulas that refer to
the daily cells, not typed numbers. Show me each formula before you
add it.[measure] is what each row counts, such as “tickets closed”. [column] is the column letter that holds the numbers.
Why this works: asking for formulas rather than numbers means the totals stay right when someone corrects a day later, and seeing the formula first lets you read its range before it lands.
What you should see: an action preview card showing what Gemini will add. Select Apply (or Insert for a single formula) to put it in the sheet. Undo reverses the last Gemini action.
3. Change one value and watch the total
Click into each total and read its range in the formula bar. Then change the last daily value of each week by 10 and check the matching total rises by 10. Change it back afterwards.
Why this works: a formula that looks right can still stop one row short. Changing the last row is the quickest way to find out, because that’s the row a short range misses.
What you should see: each weekly total moves by exactly 10 when you change that week’s last day.
Check the result
- Each total is a formula, not a typed number.
- Each range starts on the week’s first day and ends on its last.
- Changing the last day of a week changes that week’s total.
- The two weekly totals add up to the sum of the whole column.
The usual failure: a range that stops one row short. The total looks plausible, a little lower than expected, and nothing on screen says a day is missing. Spot it by changing the last row: the total doesn’t move.
The total for [week] does not include every day in that week.
Change its formula so the range covers all the rows for that week,
and check the other weekly totals for the same problem.
Show me each corrected formula.Worked example: the Friday that didn’t count
Fictional example. A service-desk lead pasted this into a new Google Sheet:
Date,Week,Tickets closed
Mon 5 Oct 2026,Week of 5 Oct,14
Tue 6 Oct 2026,Week of 5 Oct,17
Wed 7 Oct 2026,Week of 5 Oct,11
Thu 8 Oct 2026,Week of 5 Oct,19
Fri 9 Oct 2026,Week of 5 Oct,16
Mon 12 Oct 2026,Week of 12 Oct,15
Tue 13 Oct 2026,Week of 12 Oct,18
Wed 14 Oct 2026,Week of 12 Oct,13
Thu 15 Oct 2026,Week of 12 Oct,20
Fri 16 Oct 2026,Week of 12 Oct,12Gemini added two totals: 77 and 66.
- The first week was right.
=SUM(C2:C6)covers Monday to Friday: 14 + 17 + 11 + 19 + 16 = 77. - The second stopped short.
=SUM(C7:C10)covered Monday to Thursday only: 15 + 18 + 13 + 20 = 66. Changing Friday 16 October from 12 to 22 left the total at 66, which gave it away. - The repair was one range. The repair prompt changed it to
=SUM(C7:C11), giving 78. The two weeks now add to 155, the sum of the whole column, as in the example result at the top of this page.
Task kit for this job: Download (ZIP) · Reusable instructions
Go deeper
Gemini in Sheets, Docs and Slides is not the Gemini app
The Gemini app (gemini.google.com) is a chat for questions, uploaded files, images and Canvas, where it can draft an editable document or a small app beside the conversation. Gemini in Workspace works inside the file you have open in Docs, Sheets, Slides or Gmail, through the side panel. They have different entry points and are switched on separately. Use the app when you’re starting from nothing; use the side panel when the result has to live in a particular file. Detailed routes: Sheets, Canvas and which Workspace edition you have.
Gems are becoming skills
A Gem is a saved set of instructions you can reuse, like a small custom assistant: open Gems in the Gemini app sidebar, choose New Gem, add a name, instructions and optional files, then Save. Google is moving Gems to skills: from November 2026 on personal accounts, March 2027 for Workspace business accounts and June 2027 for education. Existing Gems convert automatically. A saved method helps with repeated work, such as a weekly summary, but you still bring fresh data each time. See a repeatable weekly Gem.
Change the check when the destination changes
The briefing habit from this guide travels: say what goes in, what should come out and what must not change. The check changes with the output. A Sheets job needs ranges and a changed-value test. A Slides job needs the audience, the decision and every number traced to a source. An image needs a close look at hands, text and product details. Ask what would make the result wrong, then test that first.