Oscar Research · Spreadsheet Integration Guide

Bring live Oscar data into Excel or Google Sheets

Keep working in the spreadsheet tools your team already uses while pulling the latest licensed Oscar data from your subscription endpoint.

This guide covers the two approaches documented by Oscar: Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets. Both start with the unique data URL shown against your subscription in the Customer Area.

Microsoft Excel Google Sheets
Why connect a spreadsheet?

A connected spreadsheet is useful when your team already has reports, pivots, charts or other data in Excel or Google Sheets and wants to refresh Oscar data without repeatedly downloading and re-importing a new file.

Oscar Customer Area showing subscription download buttons and the customer-specific API URL
Copy the subscription URL shown in your Oscar Customer Area. The private token is obscured in this guide.
Section 1

Microsoft Excel

Excel can connect to the Oscar endpoint using its built-in web data import tools, allowing the same workbook to be refreshed later.

1

Copy your Oscar subscription URL

Log in to the Oscar Customer Area and locate the URL shown against the database subscription you want to import.

Oscar Customer Area showing the subscription API URL
Locate the URL against the subscription you want to connect.
2

Open Excel and start a web data connection

Open a new workbook or a new tab in an existing workbook. Go to Data → Get Data → From Other Data Sources → From Web.

Microsoft Excel Data menu showing the From Web data import route
In Excel, open the Data tab and choose the web-data import route.
3

Paste your Oscar URL

Enter the Oscar subscription URL in the dialogue window that appears.

Microsoft Excel From Web dialogue with an Oscar Research API URL
Paste your Oscar subscription URL into the From Web dialogue. The token is obscured here.
4

Connect and load the data

Click OK. Depending on the size of the data file, Excel may take a short while to connect. Once the data preview appears, load it into the workbook.

Microsoft Excel data preview showing Oscar data before loading
Excel previews the returned data before loading it into the workbook. Contact fields and the private token are obscured.
5

Refresh when you need the latest version

Once connected, Excel shows the query/connection for the imported Oscar data. Use the refresh control to download the latest version into the workbook.

6

Build reports, pivots and charts around the connection

Save the workbook and use the connected data across additional tabs, queries, pivot tables and charts. Refreshing the connection updates the underlying Oscar data used by those outputs.

Section 2

Google Sheets

Google Sheets can load data from your Oscar subscription URL using the IMPORTDATA function.

Large subscriptions: the original Oscar guide recommends Excel instead of Google Sheets for larger datasets. Spreadsheet limits can change over time, so use the option that comfortably handles the size of your subscription.
1

Copy your Oscar subscription URL

Log in to the Customer Area and copy the URL for the subscription you want to import.

Oscar Customer Area showing the subscription API URL
Copy the URL for the subscription you want to use in Google Sheets.
2

Use IMPORTDATA in cell A1

Open a new Google Sheet or a new tab in an existing file. In cell A1 enter:

=IMPORTDATA("YOUR_OSCAR_URL")
Google Sheets showing an IMPORTDATA formula connected to Oscar Research
Use IMPORTDATA with your own Oscar subscription URL. The private part of the endpoint is masked in this example.
3

Let the sheet load the live Oscar data

The spreadsheet will load data from the Oscar endpoint. To refresh manually, the original guide suggests re-entering the formula so the latest data is pulled again.

Google Sheets populated with Oscar data, with contact information blurred
Once loaded, the Oscar data appears as normal spreadsheet rows. Example contact details are blurred in this guide.
4

Optional: schedule a refresh with a script

The original guide also documents an optional script-based route for regularly resetting the IMPORTDATA formula.

function myFunction() { SpreadsheetApp.getActive() .getRange('A1') .setValue('=importdata("https://www.oscar-research.co.uk/api/XXXXXXXXX")') }
5

Add a time-based trigger

Save the script, add a trigger and choose the schedule you want. The original guide recommends no more frequently than daily, with weekly also suggested as a practical option.

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When a spreadsheet is not enough

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Data Services

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Need help connecting Oscar data?

We can help you choose between spreadsheets, direct API access and a more bespoke delivery route.

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