Restore an earlier version of a Google Sheet

Click Last edit at the top right, choose the earlier version, and click Restore this version. That replaces the whole spreadsheet. If you only need part of it back, make a copy of the earlier version instead and copy the range from there, so newer changes and cell edit history stay intact.

You need permission to edit the file to see its version history.

Before you restore

Restoring affects everything in the file, not just the cells you care about.

• Every change made after that version is undone, on every tab, by every person.
• Google says restoring a spreadsheet version "clears the cell-by-cell edit history for any changes made before the restore." If you need that history, make a copy instead.

For an inventory ledger, restoring the whole file also removes every movement recorded since that version. Copying back one range, or adding a correcting movement, is usually safer.

Restore the whole spreadsheet

1. Open the spreadsheet on your computer.
2. At the top right, click Last edit.
3. In the right panel, choose the earlier version. Click Show unmodified rows at the bottom right if you want to see rows that didn't change.
4. At the top, click Restore this version.
5. Click Restore.

Copy an earlier version and bring back one range

1. Open the spreadsheet and click Last edit at the top right.
2. In the right panel, next to the version you want, click More → Make a copy.
3. Enter a name for the copy, for example "Inventory before 2026-10-27 paste".
4. Choose where to save it.
5. Click Share it with the same people only if others need the copy.
6. Click OK.

Now bring the range back into the live file:

1. In the copy, on the tab you need, click the down arrow on the sheet tab.
2. Click Copy to and choose the live spreadsheet, then click Select. The tab appears in the live file as a new tab.
3. In the live file, select the range you need on that new tab and copy it.
4. Select the first cell of the destination range and click Edit → Paste special → Paste values only.
5. Check the result, then delete the temporary tab.

Name versions you may need again

Named versions are easy to find and aren't merged with other versions.

1. Click Last edit at the top right.
2. Choose the version.
3. Click More → Name this version and enter a name.

You can add up to 15 named versions per spreadsheet. To see only those, turn on Only show named versions. A good habit for inventory: name a version after every stock count.

If you can't find the version you need

• Google notes that "the revisions for your file may occasionally be merged," so edits made close together can appear as one version. In the right panel, click Expand to see grouped versions.
• If you can't see version history at all, you don't have edit permission. Ask the owner.
• The owner of a file in a personal Google Account can delete unnamed versions, and Google says deleting version history "is permanent and cannot be undone."

How LightInventory handles reverts

In LightInventory, you don't restore the whole file to undo a mistake. A revert adds a compensating entry: the opposite movement, or the previous field value, recorded in the Log tab with who reverted it and when. Other people's changes stay in place, and the history shows both the mistake and the fix. If a managed tab is deleted or cleared in the Sheet itself, LightInventory switches the workspace to read-only and guides you through restoring it from Google version history. See the audit trail.