I have location data stored in a spreadsheet and I want to build an interactive map that shows a complete route with all the waypoints marked. Is it feasible to use mapping services along with spreadsheet APIs to accomplish this?
What I’m trying to achieve is a visual map displaying the entire path, plus a detailed breakdown below showing:
Starting location with departure time
Each waypoint with arrival time and distance from the last point
Final destination with arrival time
Has anyone successfully implemented something similar? I’m wondering about the technical approach and whether the mapping API can handle both the visual representation and the route calculations I need for the distance and timing information.
I built something nearly identical for delivery route optimization last year. Google Maps API + Google Sheets API is a perfect combo for this. Pull your locations straight from the spreadsheet, then hit the Directions API to calculate optimal routes with multiple waypoints. Here’s what I learned: structure your sheet with clear columns for addresses, preferred arrival times, and stop duration needs. Maps API does the heavy lifting - route calculations, accurate distances, and timing between stops. One gotcha: there’s a 25 waypoint limit per request on standard accounts. More stops? You’ll need to split routes into segments. The visual stuff renders smoothly and you can customize markers for different stop types. Route timing estimates are solid, but I’d add buffer time for real-world use.
Did this exact thing for a client’s field service system about six months ago. Microsoft Power BI + Bing Maps API worked best since they already had everything in Excel. Power BI connects directly to your spreadsheet and auto-refreshes when data changes - that was huge for them. Route visualization is pretty straightforward, but getting timing right took some work. Adding custom fields for service duration at each stop made the timing calculations way more accurate. Pro tip: cache your route data if you’re hitting the same locations repeatedly. Saves API calls and loads faster. The detailed breakdown displays great in a table format right next to the map.
Totally doable! I used Mapbox with Excel data for a similar project and it worked great. The tricky part isn’t the mapping - it’s getting your spreadsheet data formatted right first. Clean up your addresses before feeding them to any API or you’ll get wonky results. Mapbox gives decent time estimates too, just don’t expect perfect accuracy in heavy traffic areas.