Geocode Addresses

You have a column of addresses and need them as latitude/longitude coordinates -- for mapping, distance calculations, or spatial analysis. Or you have coordinates and need human-readable addresses.

GeoSheet handles both directions with built-in formulas. No API keys to configure, no external geocoding service to set up. Type a formula, and the address becomes a map-ready point.

Forward Geocoding: Address to Coordinates

Single address

In any cell, enter:

=GEOCODE("350 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY")

The cell shows #PENDING briefly while the geocoding request runs, then resolves to a POINT value (approximately POINT(40.7484, -73.9856)). The cell displays a blue spatial indicator showing it holds geographic data.

From a cell reference

If your addresses are in column A, put this in B1 and copy down:

=GEOCODE(A1)

Batch geocoding with Geovani

For large columns, ask Geovani:

"Geocode all the addresses in column A and put the results in column B."

Geovani writes the GEOCODE() formula for every row in one operation. This is faster than manually copying formulas for hundreds of rows.

Reverse Geocoding: Coordinates to Address

If you have coordinates and need the street address:

=REVERSE_GEOCODE(POINT(40.7484, -73.9856))

Returns a string like "350 5th Ave, New York, NY 10118, United States".

Works with cell references too:

=REVERSE_GEOCODE(A1)

Where A1 contains a POINT value.

Implicit Geocoding

Many spatial formulas accept addresses directly -- you don't need to geocode first:

=DISTANCE("New York", "Los Angeles")
=DRIVE_TIME("Chicago", "Houston")
=ISOCHRONE("350 Fifth Avenue, New York", 15)

GeoSheet automatically geocodes the address strings before computing the result. This is convenient for quick calculations, but for repeated use of the same address, it is more efficient to geocode once in a dedicated column and reference that cell.

How It Works

GeoSheet uses Mapbox Geocoding v6 under the hood. When you call GEOCODE():

1. The formula sends the address to GeoSheet's backend
2. The backend queries Mapbox and returns the best-match coordinate
3. The cell stores the result as a native POINT value
4. Results are cached, so the same address does not trigger repeated API calls

Geocoding is asynchronous -- the cell shows #PENDING while the request is in flight, then updates automatically when the result arrives. Other formulas that depend on the geocoded cell recalculate once the point is available.

Tips

• Be specific with addresses. "123 Main St" is ambiguous. "123 Main St, Springfield, IL" gets better results.
• Landmarks work. =GEOCODE("Golden Gate Bridge") resolves correctly. Mapbox recognizes well-known places.
• Combine lat/lon columns. If you have latitude in column A and longitude in column B, use =POINT(A1, B1) to create a point without geocoding.
• Check results visually. Create a map chart to spot any addresses that geocoded to unexpected locations.
• Address in, address out. Chain GEOCODE and REVERSE_GEOCODE to standardize messy addresses: =REVERSE_GEOCODE(GEOCODE(A1)) returns a clean, formatted address.

Next Steps

• Map Data in a Spreadsheet -- visualize geocoded data on interactive maps
• Calculate Distance Between Addresses -- measure distances between geocoded points
• Calculate Drive Time Between Locations -- compute driving durations and routes
• Spatial Features -- full reference for all spatial capabilities