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This guide shows how to combine the Linkup API with Google Sheets to build an automated peer comparison tool. Useful for investors, market analysts, and business strategists who need accurate competitive intelligence without standing up a custom backend. Don’t walk away if you’re not a developer! This tutorial is designed to be accessible for everyone - no coding experience required. Just follow our simple copy-paste instructions and clear screenshots to set up your own peer comparison tool in minutes.

Prerequisites

Before starting, ensure you have:
  • A Google account
  • A Linkup API key (required for making requests)

Get your API key

Create a Linkup account for free to get your API key.

Setup guide

Step 1: open Google Sheets

  1. Open a new Google Sheet
  2. Name it “Company Peer Finder” or any name you prefer

Step 2: access Apps Script

  1. Click on “Extensions” in the menu bar
  2. Select “Apps Script” from the dropdown menu
Extensions Menu 1: Accessing Apps Script through the Extensions menu

Step 3: set up the script

  1. In the Apps Script editor, delete any existing code
  2. Copy and paste the following script:

Step 4: configure your API key

  1. Replace YOUR_API_KEY with your actual Linkup API key
  2. If you don’t have an API key:
    • Go to app.linkup.so
    • Create an account or sign in
    • Navigate to your API settings
    • Copy your API key

Step 5: save the script

  1. Click the “Save” button (or press Ctrl+S/Cmd+S)

Step 6: authorize the script

  1. When prompted, authorize the script to:
    • Access your Google Sheets
    • Make external API calls
    • Display dialogs
Authorization Screen 2: The Google authorization screen

Step 7: initialize the spreadsheet

  1. Click “Run” and select “SetupSpreadsheet”
Setup Spreadsheet 3: Selecting SetupSpreadsheet

Step 8: verify setup

  1. Look for a confirmation popup in your main sheet
Confirmation Popup 4: The confirmation popup

Step 9: launch the tool

  1. Click “Run” and select “OnOpen”
OnOpen Selection 5: Selecting OnOpen

Using the peer finder

Step 1: enter companies

  1. Go to the “Input Companies” sheet
  2. Enter up to 5 companies in cells A2-A6
  3. Make sure to enter the full company names

Step 2: extract characteristics

  1. Click on the “Peer Finder” menu
  2. Select “Extract Common Characteristics”
  3. Wait for the process to complete
  4. Review the extracted characteristics in the “Characteristics” sheet

Step 3: select characteristics

  1. In the “Characteristics” sheet, review the list of common characteristics
  2. Use the checkboxes in column B to select which characteristics to use for finding peer companies
  3. Select at least one characteristic

Step 4: find peer companies

  1. Click on the “Peer Finder” menu again
  2. Select “Find Peer Companies”
  3. Wait for the process to complete
  4. Review the list of peer companies in the “Peer Companies” sheet

Step 5: review and refine

  1. Review the list of peer companies
  2. If needed, go back to Step 3 and adjust your characteristic selections
  3. Run the peer finder again with different characteristics
For more detailed examples and use cases, check out our prompting best practices.
Need help? Email support@linkup.so, ping us on Discord, or talk to us.