You Do Not Need to Learn Formulas. You Need to Learn How to Ask.
You want a formula that calculates the total sales for each salesperson, but only for orders above ₹10,000, and only for the last 30 days.
You open Google. You search. You find SUMIF. Then you realize you need SUMIFS. Then you realize you need to combine it with a date filter. Then you give up and do it manually.
This used to be the only way.
Not anymore.
AI can write your formulas
ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini. Any of them. They can write Google Sheets formulas for you.
But here is the thing. You cannot just say "write me a formula." That will not work.
You need to learn how to ask.
Step 1: Tell AI what columns you have
Do not assume AI knows your sheet. It does not. You have to describe it.
Bad prompt:
"Write a formula to calculate total sales by salesperson"
Good prompt:
"I have a Google Sheet with the following columns:Column A: DateColumn B: Salesperson NameColumn C: Client NameColumn D: Order AmountColumn E: Status (Completed/Pending/Cancelled)"
Now AI knows what it is working with.
Step 2: Paste sample data
This is the most important step. Do not describe your data. Show it.
Copy 5 rows from your sheet. Include the header row.
"Here is sample data from my sheet:
Date | Salesperson | Client | Amount | Status 01-Jan-2026 | Manish | ABC Corp | 15000 | Completed 02-Jan-2026 | Priya | XYZ Ltd | 8000 | Completed 03-Jan-2026 | Manish | DEF Inc | 25000 | Pending 04-Jan-2026 | Priya | GHI Pvt | 12000 | Cancelled 05-Jan-2026 | Manish | JKL Co | 9000 | Completed"
Now AI can see the exact format of your dates, the exact spelling of your statuses, the structure of your data. This prevents 80% of formula errors.
Step 3: Give context
What are you trying to do? Why? Where will this formula sit?
"I want to calculate the total sales for Manish, but only for orders with status 'Completed' and amount greater than ₹10,000.
This formula will go in cell G2."
Context helps AI understand the full picture. Maybe there is a simpler approach. Maybe there is a better way to structure it. Context lets AI help you properly.
Step 4: Expect the first answer to be wrong
AI will give you a formula. It might not work.
This is normal. Do not get frustrated. Do not give up.
Copy the error message. Paste it back to AI.
"I tried this formula and got #REF! error. Here is the formula you gave me: [paste formula]"
AI will correct itself. Sometimes it takes 2 attempts. Sometimes 5. That is fine.
Step 5: Ask AI to research if needed
Google Sheets updates. New functions get added. AI's training data might be outdated.
If AI gives you a formula that does not work, or if you are working with something specific like QUERY or IMPORTRANGE, tell AI to search for current information.
"This formula is not working. Can you search for the latest Google Sheets documentation on FILTER function to make sure the syntax is correct?"
AI with search capability (like ChatGPT with browsing, Claude with web search, or Gemini) can look up the latest syntax and examples.
Step 6: Test the formula
Here is the uncomfortable truth. If you do not understand the formula, you do not know if it is correct.
AI might give you a formula that runs without errors. But is it calculating what you actually want?
Test it manually.
Take 3 rows from your data. Calculate the expected result by hand. Check if the formula gives the same answer.
Change the conditions. What if the date is outside the range? What if the status is different? Does the formula still behave correctly?
Step 7: Ask AI to build tests for you
This is the advanced move.
"Can you give me 5 test cases to verify this formula is working correctly? For each test case, tell me what the input should be and what the expected output should be."
AI will generate scenarios. Edge cases you might not have thought of. Situations where the formula might break.
Run those tests. If they all pass, you can trust the formula.
Step 8: Do not give up
The first time you do this, it will feel slow. You will think "I could have done this manually faster."
You are wrong.
Yes, this conversation with AI took 20 minutes. But now you have a formula that works. And next time you need something similar, you will get it in 5 minutes.
Every hour you spend learning to work with AI on formulas will save you 100 hours in the future. I am not exaggerating.
The person who can talk to AI effectively will replace the person who cannot. This is true for every field. It is especially true for spreadsheets.
A real example
Here is a prompt that works:
I have a Google Sheet tracking daily sales. Here are my columns:
Column A: Date (format: DD-MMM-YYYY) Column B: Salesperson Name Column C: Product Category Column D: Quantity Column E: Unit Price Column F: Total Amount Column G: Payment Status (Paid/Pending/Overdue)
Sample data:
| Date | Salesperson | Category | Qty | Unit Price | Total | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01-Jan-2026 | Manish | Electronics | 5 | 2000 | 10000 | Paid |
| 02-Jan-2026 | Priya | Furniture | 2 | 15000 | 30000 | Pending |
| 03-Jan-2026 | Manish | Electronics | 3 | 2000 | 6000 | Paid |
| 04-Jan-2026 | Amit | Electronics | 10 | 2000 | 20000 | Overdue |
| 05-Jan-2026 | Priya | Furniture | 1 | 15000 | 15000 | Paid |
I want a formula that calculates the total sales for a specific salesperson (name in cell I2), only for "Paid" orders, in the current month.
Data starts from row 2 and goes till row 500.
Paste this into any AI. You will get a working formula in seconds.
The skill that matters
You do not need to memorize SUMIFS, QUERY, FILTER, ARRAYFORMULA, VLOOKUP, INDEX-MATCH.
You need to learn how to describe your problem clearly to AI.
That is the new skill. That is what separates people who spend hours on formulas from people who get them in minutes.
Start today. Open ChatGPT or Claude. Describe a formula you need. Follow the steps above.
It will change how you work with spreadsheets forever.