Hey everyone! I found this really cool progress bar design in Notion that uses heart symbols and I’m trying to recreate something similar in Google Sheets. I’ve been working on this for a while but can’t get it to look as good as the original.
So far I managed to create this formula: =REPT(char(9829),A2/B2*10)&" "&TEXT(A2/B2,"0%")
In my example, A2 contains the completed tasks (like 5) and B2 has the total tasks (like 12). I’m using char(9829) for filled hearts and tried adding char(9825) for empty ones but it doesn’t display properly.
The result shows filled hearts representing progress plus the percentage, but it’s not as visually appealing as what I saw in Notion. Has anyone successfully created nice looking progress bars in Google Sheets? I’d love to see what formulas or techniques work best for this kind of visual indicator.
Honestly, heart symbols never work right - I’ve tried this and they look terrible on mobile. Use simple squares instead: =REPT("■",ROUND(A2/B2*5,0))&REPT("□",5-ROUND(A2/B2*5,0))&" "&TEXT(A2/B2,"0%") - stays clean and displays correctly everywhere. Change the 5s to adjust bar length.
Had the exact same problem with project tracking sheets for my team. Unicode heart symbols look completely different across browsers and devices - total nightmare when sharing files.
Ditch the character codes and use SPARKLINE instead. Here’s what works: =SPARKLINE({A2,B2-A2},{"charttype","bar";"max",B2;"color1","green";"color2","lightgray"})&" "&TEXT(A2/B2,"0%")
You get a clean horizontal bar that actually looks professional and stays consistent. Green shows what’s done, gray shows what’s left. Want different colors? Just change the color1 and color2 parts.
SPARKLINE renders as actual graphics, not text characters. Scales properly, looks good printed or on any screen. Way more reliable than unicode symbols for work docs.
I get why you want those visual indicators - they make data way easier to read at a glance.
Your formula’s on the right track, but Google Sheets is weird with unicode characters. Makes this approach super frustrating. Been there when building dashboards for my team.
Here’s what I learned: trying to recreate complex visuals in spreadsheet formulas is like using a hammer for everything. You waste hours tweaking symbols instead of actually analyzing data.
What changed my workflow was automated sync between tools. Keep raw data in Sheets where it belongs, then auto-push updates to create proper visual dashboards elsewhere. Best of both worlds - spreadsheet power plus actually good-looking progress bars.
Automation handles all the formatting and visual stuff without messing with character codes or display problems. Progress bars update in real time when source data changes.
I use Latenode for this - connects Sheets with visualization tools seamlessly. No coding, just drag and drop.
I’ve been playing around with progress indicators in Sheets for client reports - conditional formatting beats formulas hands down. Just make a helper column with your progress as decimals, then slap a gradient color scale on those cells. Looks professional and hits you right away. For the actual progress bar, I mix block characters with percentages. Try =REPT("█",ROUND(A2/B2*10,0))&REPT("░",10-ROUND(A2/B2*10,0))&" "&TEXT(A2/B2,"0%") - gives you filled and empty blocks that show up the same on any device. Here’s the trick: stick with standard ASCII blocks instead of unicode hearts. They actually work reliably and still give you that visual progress vibe. Add conditional formatting on the background and you’ve got something that rivals Notion’s look while staying spreadsheet-friendly.