The Ultimate Google Sheets Social Media Content Calendar Template (Free + How-To)

Planning social content doesn’t have to be complicated or locked behind paid tools. With a well-structured Google Sheets template, teams can coordinate campaigns, approvals, and reporting in one collaborative place. Use this guide to copy a ready-made template, understand its structure, and customize it with practical formulas and lightweight automations.

The Ultimate Google Sheets Social Media Content Calendar Template (Free + How-To)

If your team wants a lean, powerful, and collaborative way to plan social content, Google Sheets is tough to beat. This guide walks you through a free social media content calendar template in Google Sheets, what it includes, and how to customize it for your workflow—with practical formulas, automations, and reporting.

Throughout, we’ll reference the exact structure used in the provided social media content calendar template Google Sheets so you can adapt or rebuild from scratch.

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Why Plan Social Content in Google Sheets

Google Sheets gives you a flexible, low-friction planning hub that scales with your team.

• Cost: It’s free. No per-seat licenses or feature paywalls.
• Flexibility: Model any process—campaigns, approvals, regions—without waiting for a vendor to add features.
• Collaboration: Real-time editing, comments, and @mentions keep your team aligned.
• Version history: Roll back mistakes or compare revisions without data loss.
• Integrations: Connect metrics, assets, and scheduling tools with formulas, Apps Script, Zapier, and Make.

When to prefer a paid tool:

• You need built-in post scheduling across many channels and time zones (without third-party automations).
• You require advanced permissions per field or complex workflow branching.
• You manage hundreds of contributors and need heavy governance at scale.

For most teams, Sheets handles the planning, approvals, and reporting layer elegantly—and can still push scheduled posts to platforms via integrations.

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What a High-Performing Calendar Includes

Plan beyond dates and posts. The best calendars connect content to strategy and outcomes.

• Channels/platforms: Instagram, LinkedIn, X, TikTok, YouTube, Pinterest, Threads, Facebook.
• Campaigns and themes: Tie posts to a campaign or content pillar.
• Personas and buyer stages: Early awareness vs. consideration vs. decision content.
• Goals and KPIs: Follower growth, reach, clicks, conversions, signups.
• Posting cadence: Platform-appropriate frequency and ideal send times.
• Content formats: Image, carousel, Reels/Shorts, Stories, long-form video, text-only.
• Governance: Ownership, approval status, and SLAs.

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Template Structure Overview

Use separate tabs to keep planning clean and modular.

• Calendar: Your weekly/monthly view of scheduled posts with filters and conditional formatting.
• Content Backlog: Ideas and drafted posts that aren’t scheduled yet.
• Approval Tracker: Centralized review status, approvers, deadlines, and comments.
• Asset Library: URLs to finalized creatives (Drive, DAM, or cloud storage) with naming conventions and rights info.
• Performance Analytics: Imported post metrics, pivots, charts, and insights.

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Build the Core Calendar Step-by-Step

Follow these steps to create a robust calendar view in Sheets.

1) Date auto-fill

• In Calendar!A2, store the start-of-week date (e.g., a Monday).
• Auto-fill the next 6 days horizontally:

=ArrayFormula(A2 + SEQUENCE(1, 7, 0, 1))

• For a monthly grid, place the first day of the month in B1 and spill all days:

=ArrayFormula(DATE(YEAR(B1), MONTH(B1), 1) + SEQUENCE(6, 7, 0, 1))

Apply conditional formatting to hide numbers not in the target month:

• Custom formula for non-month days:

=MONTH(B$1)<>MONTH(B2)

Format as light gray text or blank via custom number format: ";;;" to hide.

2) Weekly and monthly views

• Use Filter Views to toggle between “Weekly” and “Monthly” layouts.
• Alternatively, create two Calendar tabs: Calendar_Week and Calendar_Month.
• Add a dropdown selector cell (Calendar!B1) with values {Week, Month} and use IF to show the appropriate grid.

3) Filters for fast planning

• Add slicer-like controls using Data > Filter Views, or create helper filters:
• By Platform:

    =FILTER(Posts!A:Z, Posts!C:C=$B$2)  // B2 holds selected platform

• By Campaign:

    =FILTER(Posts!A:Z, Posts!F:F=$B$3)

• By Status (Draft, In Review, Approved, Scheduled, Published).

4) Conditional formatting

• Color by status:
• Draft = light gray
• In Review = yellow
• Approved = green
• Scheduled = blue
• Published = purple
• Weekend shading:

  =OR(WEEKDAY($A2,2)=6, WEEKDAY($A2,2)=7)

• Overdue approvals (Approval due date < TODAY and not Approved):

  =AND($L2< TODAY(), $K2<>"Approved")

5) Data validation for clean inputs

• Create reference lists on a “Lists” tab:
• Platforms, Campaigns, Personas, Buyer Stages, Statuses, Owners, CTAs, Formats.
• Use Data > Data validation > Criteria: Range for each column to ensure consistent values.
• Add checkboxes for Boolean fields like “Evergreen,” “Repurpose,” “Reshare OK.”

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Essential Columns Explained

Use consistent naming and limit free-text fields. Here are the core columns you’ll want in Posts (the master data table feeding your Calendar).

Pro tip: Freeze the header row and use Filter views to isolate a week, platform, or campaign.

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Smart Formulas and Automations

Dropdowns and lists

• Build dynamic lists that expand as you add items:

=UNIQUE(FILTER(Lists!A:A, LEN(Lists!A:A)))

Use this range in Data validation for the Platforms column.

UTM builder

Concatenate a share URL with consistent UTM parameters drawn from other columns:

=IF(
  LEN($E2)=0,
  ,
  LOWER($E2) &
  IF(RIGHT($E2,1)="?","&","?") &
  "utm_source=" & SUBSTITUTE($A2," ","-") &
  "&utm_medium=social" &
  "&utm_campaign=" & SUBSTITUTE($F2," ","-") &
  "&utm_content=" & SUBSTITUTE($R2," ","-")  // R2 = Format
)

Weekly schedule view

Create an auto-updating week view filtered by Publish Date:

=LET(
  _start, $B$1,
  _end, $B$1+6,
  FILTER(Posts!A:Z, Posts!B:B>=_start, Posts!B:B<=_end)
)

If LET is unavailable, use named cells and FILTER directly.

Pulling metrics from another sheet

Import performance metrics from a separate “Metrics” file:

=IMPORTRANGE("https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/XXXXXXXX","Raw!A:Z")

Then join with your Posts table by Published Link using VLOOKUP or XLOOKUP:

=ARRAYFORMULA(IFERROR(VLOOKUP(Posts!N:N, Metrics!A:Z, {2,3,4}, FALSE),))

Where column N is Published Link, and Metrics columns 2/3/4 are Impressions / Clicks / Engagements.

Generate assignee views

Each owner gets a filtered list of their items:

=FILTER(Posts!A:Z, Posts!J:J=$B$1)  // B1 = selected owner

Checkboxes to drive logic

• Add a checkbox “Ready to Schedule” and conditionally format rows green:

=$S2=TRUE

Apps Script reminders (email or Slack)

Send daily approval reminders for items with Approval = Pending and Approval Due = Today or overdue. Extensions > Apps Script:

function sendApprovalReminders() {
  const ss = SpreadsheetApp.getActive();
  const sheet = ss.getSheetByName('Posts');
  const data = sheet.getDataRange().getValues();
  const headers = data.shift();
  const idx = col => headers.indexOf(col);

  const now = new Date();
  const today = new Date(now.getFullYear(), now.getMonth(), now.getDate());

  const rows = data.filter(r => {
    const approval = r[idx('Approval')];
    const due = r[idx('Approval Due')];
    return approval === 'Pending' && due && new Date(due) <= today;
  });

  if (!rows.length) return;

  const subject = 'Social Approvals Due Today';
  const body = rows.map(r => {
    return `Campaign: ${r[idx('Campaign Tag')]}
Platform: ${r[idx('Platform')]}
Publish: ${Utilities.formatDate(new Date(r[idx('Publish Date')]), ss.getSpreadsheetTimeZone(), 'yyyy-MM-dd')} ${r[idx('Publish Time')]}
Owner: ${r[idx('Owner')]}
Link to row: ${ss.getUrl()}`;
  }).join('\n\n---\n\n');

  // Send to approver group
  MailApp.sendEmail('approvals@yourcompany.com', subject, body);
}

• Set a time-driven trigger (daily at 9 AM) to run sendApprovalReminders.

To notify Slack, post to an Incoming Webhook instead of email:

function notifySlack(text) {
  const url = 'https://hooks.slack.com/services/XXX/YYY/ZZZ';
  const payload = JSON.stringify({ text });
  UrlFetchApp.fetch(url, { method: 'post', contentType: 'application/json', payload });
}

Zapier/Make: Queue posts to Buffer or Hootsuite

• Trigger: New row in Posts where Status = Approved AND Ready to Schedule = TRUE.
• Action: Create scheduled post in Buffer/Hootsuite.
• Map Publish Date/Time, Post Copy, Asset Link.
• Use platform router to send to the right channel.
• Action: Update the Posts row with the scheduled post ID and scheduling status.

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Collaboration and Governance

A little structure prevents chaos while keeping your team nimble.

• Access levels:
• Editors: Social team and campaign managers.
• Commenters: Stakeholders, legal, product.
• Viewers: Execs and adjacent teams.

• Protected ranges:
• Lock headers, formulas, and calculated columns (UTMs, metrics).
• Allow edit for content fields only.

• Comments and @mentions:
• Use comments for feedback threads. Resolve once incorporated.
• Use a “Notes” column for context or rationale.

• Approval workflow:
• Status transitions: Draft → In Review → Approved → Scheduled → Published.
• SLA targets (e.g., review within 2 business days).
• Use Approval Tracker tab to show pending items by approver and due date.

• Naming conventions:
• Assets: CAMPAIGN_PLATFORM_FORMAT_DATE_VERSION.ext
• Campaign tags: YYYY-QQ-Theme or LaunchName-YYYY-MM

• Time zones:
• Set File > Settings > Time zone to your planning standard (e.g., UTC).
• Store a Region column if you schedule regionally, and convert time in the integration to local.

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Reporting Inside Sheets

Turn your calendar into an insights engine.

• Import metrics:
• Use IMPORTRANGE or connectors (e.g., exporting from Sprout, Hootsuite, native CSVs).
• Standardize columns: Published Link, Platform, Date, Impressions, Reach, Clicks, Engagements, Saves, Shares, Video Views, CTR, ER.

• Build pivot tables:
• Performance by Platform and Format: Which combinations drive clicks or saves?
• Campaign ROI proxy: Sum clicks or signups by Campaign Tag.
• Week-over-week trends: Impressions and engagement rates.

• Charts:
• Stacked bar by platform for volume (posts) and impact (impressions).
• Line chart for CTR or ER over time.
• Scatter plot of Post Length vs. Engagement to identify sweet spots.

• Content scoring:
• Weighted score to prioritize backlog ideas:

  =ROUND(0.4*Normalized_Impact + 0.3*Strategic_Alignment + 0.2*Effort_Inverse + 0.1*EvergreenFlag*100)

• Use conditional formatting to highlight top-scoring ideas.

• Insights to track:
• Best publish times per platform.
• Top campaigns by conversion.
• Formats with highest saves/shares.
• Persona-stage gaps in your content mix.

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Download the Ready-to-Use Template

Make a copy of the social media content calendar template Google Sheets and start customizing:

• Calendar: Pre-built weekly and monthly views with status colors.
• Content Backlog: Idea intake with scoring.
• Approval Tracker: Approver workload and due dates.
• Asset Library: Structured links and rights fields.
• Performance Analytics: Pivots and charts ready for data.

Get the template:

• Open the template link and choose File > Make a copy (ensure you’re signed into your Google account).
• Set File > Settings > Locale and Time zone.
• Share with your team and assign roles.

Customization tips:

• Regions and time zones:
• Add Region and Local Publish Time columns.
• Use region-specific Filter Views and a per-region cadence.
• Multiple brands:
• Add a Brand column and color-code by brand.
• Create brand-specific dashboards using FILTER or QUERY.
• Quarterly planning:
• Use a “Quarter” column (e.g., =ROUNDUP(MONTH(Publish Date)/3,0)).
• Create separate pivot tabs per quarter.

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Quick Reference: Key Formulas

• Auto-fill dates (weekly):

=ArrayFormula(A2 + SEQUENCE(1, 7, 0, 1))

• Filter posts by date range:

=FILTER(Posts!A:Z, Posts!B:B>=StartDate, Posts!B:B<=EndDate)

• Unique list for dropdowns:

=UNIQUE(FILTER(Lists!A:A, LEN(Lists!A:A)))

• Import metrics:

=IMPORTRANGE("SpreadsheetURL","Raw!A:Z")

• Generate UTMs:

=LOWER(URL)&"?"&TEXTJOIN("&",TRUE,
"utm_source="&Platform,
"utm_medium=social",
"utm_campaign="&Campaign,
"utm_content="&Format)

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Final Thoughts

A nimble, well-governed calendar in Google Sheets keeps your social program transparent, data-driven, and fast. Start with the template, wire in your approvals and automations, and grow reporting as your needs evolve. With a few formulas and practical rules, you’ll match the clarity of paid tools—without the cost.