How can I embed an image in a Gmail email and preserve Google Sheets formatting when converting to an image?

Below are answers focusing on aspects related to Google Sheets. (For Gmail questions or details, the Gmail API documentation is the appropriate reference.)

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1. Inserting an Image in the Gmail Body

Inserting an image into a Gmail message is handled by the Gmail API or by using Gmail’s web interface (HTML emails). For example, when using the Gmail API you would create an email message with an HTML body that embeds an image either by hosting it externally or by including it as an inline attachment with a CID (Content-ID) reference.

Note: This capability is provided by the Gmail API and isn’t directly related to Google Sheets or the Sheets API.

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2. Retaining Google Sheets Cell or Row Colors When Converting to an Image

When you “paint” (apply background colors to) cells or rows in a Google Sheet, that formatting is stored as part of the sheet’s properties and is retrievable via the Sheets API. For example, if you use the spreadsheets.get method with the includeGridData parameter enabled, the response will include the cell data along with their formatting (such as background colors).

However, the Sheets API does not provide a method to export or convert a range to an image while automatically preserving this formatting. In other words:

• Retrieving Formatting:
  You can programmatically read formatting details (colors, text formats, etc.) from a sheet via the API. This data is available in the cell data if you use an appropriate request parameter.

• Converting to an Image:
  To generate an image from a range that includes the visual formatting (colors, borders, etc.), you would need an additional process. Some approaches include:

  • Exporting the sheet or a specific range as a PDF via the Google Sheets export options (which preserves formatting) and then converting the PDF page to an image.
  • Creating a custom HTML representation of the data (using the retrieved formatting values) and rendering it (for example, using a headless browser or a conversion library) to obtain an image.
  • Capturing a screenshot of the rendered sheet.

Each of these approaches involves extra steps outside of the basic Sheets API functionality.

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If your goal is to send an email that displays a rendered version of your sheet (with colors intact), you might consider one of these export/conversion methods and then use the Gmail API to compose the message with the resulting image as an inline attachment or embedded link.

Feel free to ask more questions related to Google Sheets API if you need further clarification.