Time-Driven Triggers – Apps Script

Time-driven triggers let you schedule a function to run automatically at a set interval — every hour, once a day, weekly, or at a specific date and time. They are one of the most powerful features in Apps Script for building fully automated workflows.

Creating a Daily Trigger

Run createDailyTrigger() once to schedule sendDailyReport to fire every morning at 8am:

function createDailyTrigger() {
  ScriptApp.newTrigger("sendDailyReport")
    .timeBased()
    .everyDays(1)
    .atHour(8)
    .inTimezone("America/New_York")
    .create();

  Logger.log("Daily trigger created.");
}

Creating an Hourly Trigger

function createHourlyTrigger() {
  ScriptApp.newTrigger("checkForNewDeals")
    .timeBased()
    .everyHours(1)
    .create();

  Logger.log("Hourly trigger created.");
}

Creating a Weekly Trigger

function createWeeklyTrigger() {
  ScriptApp.newTrigger("sendWeeklyDigest")
    .timeBased()
    .onWeekDay(ScriptApp.WeekDay.MONDAY)
    .atHour(9)
    .create();

  Logger.log("Weekly Monday digest trigger created.");
}

Daily Report Function

This function runs on the daily trigger and emails a summary of the Sales Tracker to the sales manager:

function sendDailyReport() {
  var sheet = SpreadsheetApp
    .getActiveSpreadsheet()
    .getSheetByName("Sales Tracker");

  var data = sheet.getRange(2, 1, sheet.getLastRow() - 1, 8).getValues();
  // Columns: [Customer Name, Email, Product, Amount, Region, Sales Rep, Status, Date]

  var closed = data.filter(function(row) { return row[6] === "Closed"; });
  var inProgress = data.filter(function(row) { return row[6] === "In Progress"; });
  var totalRevenue = closed.reduce(function(sum, row) { return sum + row[3]; }, 0);

  var today = Utilities.formatDate(new Date(), Session.getScriptTimeZone(), "MMMM dd, yyyy");

  var htmlBody = `
    <h2>Daily Sales Report – ${today}</h2>
    <table border="1" cellpadding="8" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse:collapse;">
      <tr><td><strong>Closed Deals</strong></td><td>${closed.length}</td></tr>
      <tr><td><strong>In Progress</strong></td><td>${inProgress.length}</td></tr>
      <tr><td><strong>Total MRR (Closed)</strong></td><td>$${totalRevenue}/mo</td></tr>
    </table>
    <br>
    <p>View the full tracker: <a href="${SpreadsheetApp.getActiveSpreadsheet().getUrl()}">Sales Tracker</a></p>
  `;

  GmailApp.sendEmail(
    "[email protected]",
    "Daily Sales Report – " + today,
    "Daily report attached. Open in HTML-capable email client.",
    { htmlBody: htmlBody }
  );

  Logger.log("Daily report sent.");
}

With the sample data, the report shows 2 closed deals, 1 in progress, and $398/mo in total MRR.

Weekly Digest Function

function sendWeeklyDigest() {
  var sheet = SpreadsheetApp
    .getActiveSpreadsheet()
    .getSheetByName("Sales Tracker");

  var data = sheet.getRange(2, 1, sheet.getLastRow() - 1, 8).getValues();

  // Get deals closed this week
  var now = new Date();
  var weekAgo = new Date(now.getTime() - 7 * 24 * 60 * 60 * 1000);

  var thisWeek = data.filter(function(row) {
    var dealDate = new Date(row[7]);
    return row[6] === "Closed" && dealDate >= weekAgo;
  });

  var rows = thisWeek.map(function(row) {
    return `<tr><td>${row[0]}</td><td>${row[2]}</td><td>$${row[3]}/mo</td><td>${row[4]}</td></tr>`;
  }).join("");

  var htmlBody = `
    <h2>Weekly Closed Deals Digest</h2>
    <table border="1" cellpadding="8" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse:collapse;">
      <thead style="background:#4A90D9;color:#fff;">
        <tr><th>Customer</th><th>Product</th><th>Amount</th><th>Region</th></tr>
      </thead>
      <tbody>${rows || "<tr><td colspan='4'>No deals closed this week.</td></tr>"}</tbody>
    </table>
  `;

  GmailApp.sendEmail("[email protected]", "Weekly Sales Digest", "", { htmlBody: htmlBody });
  Logger.log("Weekly digest sent.");
}

Available Time Intervals

Method	Description
`.everyMinutes(n)`	Every n minutes (1, 5, 10, 15, 30)
`.everyHours(n)`	Every n hours (1, 2, 4, 6, 8, 12)
`.everyDays(n)`	Every n days (1–7)
`.everyWeeks(n)`	Every n weeks (1–3)
`.onWeekDay(day)`	Specific day of the week
`.onMonthDay(n)`	Specific day of the month
`.atDate(year, month, day)`	One-time at a specific date