How to make a checklist with a progress bar in Google Sheets googles.., by Laura Flick on YouTube. 2 min 1 s.
- Video length
- 2 min 1 s
- Time to do it
- 10 minutes
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Steps
- 8
What you need
Steps
Open sheets.google.com and start a blank spreadsheet. Type your tasks in column A, one task per row, starting in cell A2.
Select the cells beside your tasks, for example B2 to B11, then click Insert and choose Checkbox. A tick box appears in every selected cell.
Click an empty cell such as D2 and type =COUNTIF(B2:B11,TRUE). This counts how many boxes are ticked.
In the cell below, type =COUNTA(A2:A11) to count the total number of tasks on your list.
In another cell, divide the two: =COUNTIF(B2:B11,TRUE)/COUNTA(A2:A11). Then format it with Format, Number, Percent.
Add the bar with =SPARKLINE(D4,{"charttype","bar";"max",1;"color1","#4caf50"}), where D4 holds your percent. Press Enter and the bar appears.
Prefer no SPARKLINE? In another cell type =REPT("█",ROUND(D4*20)) to build a simple text bar that grows with your percentage.
Tick a checkbox to test it. The count, the percentage and the bar should all update straight away.
Tips and common mistakes
Keep the checkbox range and the formula ranges the same size, or your percentage will be wrong.
Use an open range like B2:B so tasks you add later are counted without editing the formulas.
Format the percentage cell as a percent, otherwise the bar reads a decimal like 0.4 instead of 40 percent.
Freeze your header row with View, Freeze so labels stay visible while you scroll through a long list.
Questions
Can I build this checklist on the Google Sheets phone app?
Yes. Tap Insert and choose Checkbox to add tick boxes. Typing long formulas such as SPARKLINE is fiddly on a phone, so set the progress bar up on a computer if you can.
Why does my progress bar stay empty?
COUNTIF only counts cells that hold TRUE, so check the range matches your actual checkbox cells. Also check that the cell you point SPARKLINE at contains a number, not text.
Can I add more tasks later?
Yes. Insert a row inside your range, or write the formulas with an open range like B2:B so new tasks are picked up automatically.
This guide was drafted from the video's details and general task knowledge. It has not been checked against the full video. Check the video and relevant product instructions before following a procedure. Report a correction.
