Overview
Feeds are read when a request needs them and kept for an hour, so headlines are at most an hour old. Each story lists the other outlets carrying it, with their headlines and links.
Formula
One function covers the whole catalog: the first argument names the source, the rest are its inputs, and the "field" pair says which single value lands in the cell. Formulas covers the grammar that applies to all of them.
=VERVE("news", "field", "date")=VERVE.CALL("news", "field", "date")Inputs
Required inputs are positional, in the order below. Everything else is passed as a "name", value pair after them — the same shape as SUMIFS. Premium inputs are accepted on every plan but only take effect on plans that include them.
| Input | Type | Where it goes | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
categoryOptional | string | "category", value | Only stories on this topic. A story is in every topic its headline and summary name, not only its feed's section.businessentertainmentworldhealthsciencesportstechnologypolitics+5 |
countryOptional | string | "country", value | Only stories about this country, from any outlet: an ISO 3166 code or English name, for example JP or Japan. length 0–60 |
editionOptional | string | "edition", value | Only stories run by outlets based in this country: what its press is covering, in the languages it writes in. See list=editions.USGBCAAUINIENZSG+21 |
languageOptional | string | "language", value | Only stories in this language. Defaults to English, or with edition to the languages that edition's press writes in. Stories are never translated.enesfrdeptit |
sortOptional | string | "sort", value | top ranks stories by how many outlets carry them, favouring the last 12 hours; latest is newest first.toplatestdefault top |
qOptionalPremium | string | "q", value | Only stories whose headlines or summaries contain every word given, in any case. length 0–100 |
sinceOptionalPremium | string | "since", value | Only stories published at or after this date or date-time (ISO 8601), for example 2026-10-01 or 2026-10-01T14:00:00Z. length 0–30 · date |
limitOptional | integer | "limit", value | Maximum number of stories to return: up to 10 on the free plan, 50 on paid plans. range 1–∞ |
Passing an option
=VERVE("news", "category", "technology")=VERVE.CALL("news", "category", "technology")What lands in your sheet
The "field" pair is what makes the formula resolve to one cell. Its value is a dot-path from the table below, so swapping it is how you pull a different value — one formula per column.
Seeing everything at once
Drop the "field" pair and the formula returns the whole response instead: two columns, field name on the left and value on the right, spilling from the cell you typed in.
=VERVE("news")=VERVE.CALL("news")The second row's table would land on top of the first's, and every cell after the first reads #REF! (#SPILL! in Excel). Keep one per sheet, or name a field, and leave the cells below and to the right empty.
Response fields
Paths are relative to data. Each one is exactly what the "field" pair accepts, so swapping it is how you pull a different value into a cell. On a plan without a Premium field the cell reads #PREMIUM(field) rather than a value, so a locked field never looks like a real answer.
| Use as "field" | Type | Example cell value | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
date | string | 2026-10-06 | Date of the request in YYYY-MM-DD format |
category | string | technology | The category requested, or null |
edition | object | null | The edition requested, or null |
languages | array | ["en"] | The languages news can be requested in (list=languages) |
country | object | null | ISO 3166 code of the country requested, or null |
sort | string | top | The ranking used: top or latest |
lastUpdated | string | 2026-10-06T21:25:23.605Z | When the newest of the feeds read was last fetched (ISO 8601) |
articleCount | number | 3 | Number of stories returned |
articles | array[3] | The stories, ranked | |
articles.0.category | string | technology | The category requested, or the story's primary category |
articles.0.website | string | Ars Technica | Outlet that published the lead article |
articles.0.title | string | Amazon kills Alexa’s ability to control Echo speakers' AUX input | Headline of the lead article |
articles.0.pubDate | string | 2026-10-06T17:03:16.000Z | Publication date and time of the lead article in ISO 8601 format |
articles.0.image | string | https://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/71I6oj6ZFBL._SL1000_-1000x648.jpg | Image for the story from the outlets' feeds, or null |
articles.0.description | string | Amazon hasn't made an Echo with a 3.5mm port in six years. | Summary of the lead article |
articles.0.link | string | https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2026/10/amazon-bricks-alexas-ability-to-control-echo-speakers-aux-in… | URL of the lead article |
articles.0.id | string | 1c4e377fb78ebbb0 | Stable identifier of the lead article |
articles.0.categories | array | ["technology"] | Every topic the story is about |
articles.0.countries | array | [] | ISO 3166 codes of the countries the story is about |
articles.0.edition | string | US | Country the lead outlet is based in |
articles.0.language | string | en | Language of the lead article (ISO 639-1) |
articles.0.coverage | number | 2 | Number of outlets carrying the story |
articles.0.sourcesPremium | array[1] | The other outlets carrying the story | |
articles.0.sources.0.websitePremium | string | The Verge | Outlet name |
articles.0.sources.0.titlePremium | string | Alexa can’t control the aux input on Amazon Echo speakers anymore | That outlet's headline |
articles.0.sources.0.linkPremium | string | https://www.theverge.com/tech/1006103/amazon-alexa-aux-voice-commands | URL of that outlet's article |
articles.0.sources.0.pubDatePremium | string | 2026-10-06T19:03:56.000Z | Publication date and time of that outlet's article (ISO 8601) |
articles.0.sentimentPremium | string | neutral | Tone of the headline and summary: very positive, positive, neutral, negative or very negative; English stories only, null for other languages |
articles.0.sentimentScorePremium | number | -1 | Tone score of the headline and summary; above zero is positive, below zero negative; English stories only, null for other languages |
When a cell doesn't fill
A failed lookup returns readable text starting with #ERR rather than a spreadsheet error, because Excel cannot show a custom message on a real error — you would get a bare #VALUE! with no reason. The trade-off is that IFERROR() will not catch it; test with LEFT(cell, 4) = "#ERR" instead. Error handling covers the rest.
| Cell reads | What happened |
|---|---|
#ERR Not connected | No API key saved. Open the side panel and connect your account. |
#ERR Replace <name> with a cell or value | A preview formula was copied as-is. Swap the placeholder for a cell reference. |
#ERR No "x" in news | An option name this source does not take. The message lists the ones it does. |
#ERR No data point "…" | The "field" path is not in the response. Check it against the table above. |
#PREMIUM(field) | The field exists but your plan does not include it. |
#ERR Out of credits | The cycle's credits are spent. Usage resets on your billing date. |
Before the formula works
The add-in reads the API key you saved once in the side panel — the key never goes in the formula, so a shared sheet does not leak it and a collaborator without access simply sees the last calculated values.
- Install the add-in for Google Sheets or Excel.
- Open the side panel and sign in, or paste a key from your dashboard.
- Type the formula above into any cell.
Use cases
- Morning Executive Briefings
- Digest bots pull business and technology summaries each morning to deliver quick industry reading directly into team messaging channels.
- Sports Fan Hubs
- When match results break, community forums display new sports headlines and links directly to the original publisher.
- Clinic Waiting Displays
- Show recent health and science summaries within waiting room screens to keep patients updated on public health reporting.
- Trading Desk Terminals
- To track market developments, financial dashboards stream business headlines and source links next to active ticker quotes.
Other ways to use World News
Set up World News on VerveSheets, or reach the same source a different way. Your VerveSheets account and credits work on all of them — one key, one balance.