How to build a crypto portfolio tracker in Google Sheets
A spreadsheet is the classic place to track a crypto portfolio — one calm grid of every coin you hold. Here's how to build one in Google Sheets, exactly where GOOGLEFINANCE runs out of road (coins, live prices, realized gains), and the no-formula way to get all three.
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September 3, 2026 · 6 min read
What a crypto portfolio tracker actually needs
Four columns do most of the job, and the last two are where it gets hard:
- Holdings — coin, quantity, and your average cost.
- Live price — the current price of each coin, updating on its own (crypto trades 24/7).
- Market value & allocation— quantity x price, and each coin's % of the whole portfolio.
- Gains — unrealized (value - cost) and, ideally, realizedP&L once you've sold, plus your real money-weighted return.
The GOOGLEFINANCE approach — and its two walls
For a major coin you can pull a price with the currency-pair syntax: =GOOGLEFINANCE("CURRENCY:BTCUSD"). Multiply by quantity for market value, and you have a basic tracker. But it hits two walls fast:
- Coin coverage. It works for BTC, ETH and a few others — most coins return
#N/Abecause there's no data (why crypto fails in Sheets). And the prices it does return are delayed and freeze when the tab is closed. - Realized P&L. Unrealized gain is a simple formula. But tracking cost basis across multiple buys and sells (FIFO or average cost), and your true money-weighted return (XIRR), means a maze of manual formulas that break the moment you add a trade.
The Apps Script + API approach — any coin, but it's code
The robust DIY route is calling a free API (CoinGecko, or an exchange) from Google Apps Script and writing prices into your sheet on a timer. It covers anycoin and it's reliable — but now you're maintaining a script, an API key, and a refresh trigger just to keep a portfolio's prices current. That's a lot of upkeep for a watchlist.
The no-formula tracker — holdings, live prices and gains
If you want the whole thing without building it, Stealth Quotes is a spreadsheet-style tracker: enter each coin, your quantity and cost, and it fills in the live price, market value, allocation %, and your gains automatically — for any coin, in real time, right next to your stocks. No CURRENCY: syntax, no scraping, no Apps Script.
Enter your coins, quantities and cost — get live value, allocation and gains, no formulas. Free, no sign-up.
Try it free →Realized vs. unrealized — the part sheets get wrong
Most hand-built crypto sheets only ever show unrealizedgain, because that's the easy formula. The moment you sell part of a position, you need cost-basis accounting to know your realizedprofit and what's left — and a spreadsheet formula rarely gets FIFO right. A purpose-built tracker keeps a trade log and computes realized P&L, remaining cost basis, and your money-weighted return (XIRR) for you, so the numbers stay honest as you trade.
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Frequently asked questions
Can you track a crypto portfolio in Google Sheets?
Yes, but with limits. You can lay out your holdings and use GOOGLEFINANCE("CURRENCY:BTCUSD") for a few major coins — but most coins return #N/A, the prices are delayed, and the sheet can't do realized P&L or money-weighted return without heavy manual formulas.
How do I get live prices for my crypto holdings in a spreadsheet?
GOOGLEFINANCE only covers a handful of coins and lags the market. For any coin in real time you need a CoinGecko/exchange API via Apps Script (code), or a no-formula tracker like Stealth Quotes that streams live prices next to your holdings.
Can Google Sheets calculate my crypto gains?
Unrealized gain is easy (quantity x price - cost). Realized P&L across multiple buys and sells (FIFO/average cost) and your true money-weighted return (XIRR) are where a hand-built sheet gets fragile — that's exactly what a purpose-built tracker computes automatically.
Is there a free crypto portfolio tracker that works like a spreadsheet?
Yes — Stealth Quotes is a spreadsheet-style tracker that's free with no sign-up: enter your coins, quantities and cost, and it shows live value, allocation, gains and dividends-style totals across crypto and stocks in one view.
Your whole crypto portfolio, live, in a spreadsheet.
Enter your holdings and see live value, allocation and gains across every coin — and your stocks — in one view. No formulas, any coin. Free, no sign-up.