Store settings with PropertiesService

1 · Prepare

Put these pieces in place

• Open any Apps Script project. It can be one attached to a Sheet or a standalone project from script.google.com.
• Know where Project Settings is. It is the gear icon in the left sidebar, and its Script Properties section lists what this guide saves.
• Pick values you are comfortable sharing with everyone who can edit the project, because every editor can read the script properties.

2 · Review before running

What the script can access and change

3 · Copy

Paste this into the Apps Script editor

Create or open a script file, replace the example values marked above, then save the project.

const RECIPIENT_PROPERTY = 'REPORT_RECIPIENT'; // The name the script looks up. Capital letters with underscores make property names easy to spot in the code.
const RECIPIENT_VALUE = 'you@example.com'; // The example address saved under that name. Replace it with the address you actually use.
const TITLE_PROPERTY = 'REPORT_TITLE'; // The name of the second setting, so you can see how several values are saved at once.
const TITLE_VALUE = 'Weekly report'; // The example title saved under that name.

function saveSettings() {
  const properties = PropertiesService.getScriptProperties();
  properties.setProperties({
    [RECIPIENT_PROPERTY]: RECIPIENT_VALUE,
    [TITLE_PROPERTY]: TITLE_VALUE
  });
  Logger.log('Saved ' + RECIPIENT_PROPERTY + ' as ' + RECIPIENT_VALUE);
  Logger.log('Saved ' + TITLE_PROPERTY + ' as ' + TITLE_VALUE);
}

function showSettings() {
  const properties = PropertiesService.getScriptProperties();
  const recipient = properties.getProperty(RECIPIENT_PROPERTY);
  if (!recipient) {
    throw new Error(RECIPIENT_PROPERTY + ' is not set. Run saveSettings once, or add the property in Project Settings.');
  }

  const title = properties.getProperty(TITLE_PROPERTY) || TITLE_VALUE;
  Logger.log(RECIPIENT_PROPERTY + ' is ' + recipient);
  Logger.log(TITLE_PROPERTY + ' is ' + title);
}

4 · Run safely

Follow these steps in order

1. Paste both functions and run showSettings first

   Choose showSettings and press Run before anything is saved. It stops with the message REPORT_RECIPIENT is not set. Nothing is stored or changed by this test.

2. Save the settings once

   Choose saveSettings and run it. Open the Execution log to see the two saved values. You only need to run this function again when you want to overwrite the values from code.

3. Read them back

   Run showSettings again. The log now prints both values. Every later run reads the saved values, so the code itself never has to change.

4. Edit a value without touching the code

   Open Project Settings with the gear icon and scroll to Script Properties. Change REPORT_RECIPIENT there, save, and run showSettings once more to see the new value.

5. Know which store to pick

   There are three stores. Script properties, used here, are shared by the project and every editor can see them. User properties keep a separate copy for each person who runs the script. Document properties belong to the one Sheet, Doc, or Form the script is attached to.

5 · Confirm

How to tell it worked

The Execution log shows REPORT_RECIPIENT is you@example.com and REPORT_TITLE is Weekly report, and Project Settings lists both names under Script Properties.

If the result is different

Troubleshooting

The run fails with "REPORT_RECIPIENT is not set. Run saveSettings once, or add the property in Project Settings."

That message means the name has no value yet. Run saveSettings, or add the name and value by hand under Project Settings, Script Properties.

A saved number behaves like text.

Property values are always text. Wrap the value in Number(...) when you need to do arithmetic with it.

A colleague sees a value you thought was private.

Script properties are visible to everyone who can edit the project. They are better than pasting a value into the code, but they are not a secret store. Keep anything private out of the project.

The property disappeared.

Properties belong to one script project. A copy of the Sheet or a new project starts with an empty list, so run saveSettings again there.