Create your first sync
Connect both accounts, pick your data, map the columns, preview it, and launch — start to finish.
10 min read · Updated July 2026
1. Connect Attio and Google
Open the app, hit Create New Sync, and connect both accounts. You authorize on Attio’s and Google’s own screens — you never type either password into SheetSync.
- Connect Attio and approve access to the records you want to sync.
- Connect Google and approve access to the spreadsheets you’ll use.
- Connected Attio before we shipped list support? The setup screen will ask you to reconnect.
Why you might have to reconnect
Reading and writing Attio lists needs permissions an older connection doesn’t have. Reconnecting updates the authorization — it doesn’t touch your Attio data.
2. Pick a direction
| Direction | Use when | What to watch |
|---|---|---|
| Attio → Sheet | Attio is where the team manages the record. | A value from Attio can replace something typed straight into the sheet. |
| Sheet → Attio | The spreadsheet is deliberately in charge. | A value from the sheet can replace something edited straight into Attio. |
| Bidirectional | People legitimately edit in both. | Fields merge on their own. If the same field changed on both sides and we can’t tell which came last, Attio wins. |
Attio → Sheet
- Use when
- Attio is where the team manages the record.
- What to watch
- A value from Attio can replace something typed straight into the sheet.
Sheet → Attio
- Use when
- The spreadsheet is deliberately in charge.
- What to watch
- A value from the sheet can replace something edited straight into Attio.
Bidirectional
- Use when
- People legitimately edit in both.
- What to watch
- Fields merge on their own. If the same field changed on both sides and we can’t tell which came last, Attio wins.
3. Pick the Attio source
Choose Object to sync every record of one type. The picker lists the objects in your workspace, including the custom ones we support.
Choose List to sync the entries on a single Attio list. A list sync can map fields from the parent record and attributes that only exist on the list entry.
[ Object or list? ]
Object → every Company record, into a company directory tab.
List → only the companies on Partnerships Pipeline, with the list-only Stage and Owner columns.
4. Pick a spreadsheet and tab
Choose the spreadsheet, then the exact tab. One sync connects one Attio source to one tab — so if People, Companies, and Deals belong on different tabs, that’s three syncs.
- Headers in row 1, data underneath.
- Make headers specific: Work email beats Email, Deal stage beats Stage.
- Don’t merge header cells.
- Leave row 1 empty and SheetSync will write a small starter set of headers based on your Attio source.
5. Map the fields
A mapping is one Attio attribute paired with one sheet column. SheetSync auto-matches the obvious ones; you add, remove, or correct the rest.
- 01
Check the automatic matches
Similar names don’t always mean the same thing. Confirm each one.
- 02
Add Attio’s required fields
If this direction creates Attio records, every required writable field needs a mapping or a working Attio default.
- 03
Add a match field
Something unique like email or domain, so an existing row finds its existing record.
- 04
Expand a linked object, if you need it
For example, expand a Person’s company and map Company Name or Domain onto the same row.
6. Preview, then launch
Use Test Sync where it’s offered. It reads a small sample and shows you the values that would get written, without creating anything. Fix empty or invalid mappings before you move on.
When the preview looks right, hit Create Sync. The first run gets queued and you can watch it from the dashboard.
Big or important? Use a copy.
If this is an established CRM process or a sheet people depend on, run it against a duplicated tab and a handful of records first.