When should you stop using Google Sheets as your backend?

In my last post, I wrote about why many MVPs start with Google Sheets.

It is fast, familiar, and easy for non-technical people to update.

But there is an important follow-up question:

When should you stop using Google Sheets as your backend?

Because the answer is not “never use Sheets.”

And it is also not “use Sheets forever.”

Google Sheets can be a great starting point, but it should not become an accidental permanent architecture.

Google Sheets is good when speed matters most

For an early MVP, Google Sheets can be useful because:

the schema is still changing

the product idea is not fully validated yet

non-technical teammates need to edit data

you do not want to build an admin panel too early

you need a quick demo or prototype

the traffic is still low

At this stage, the goal is not perfect infrastructure.

The goal is learning.

Can users understand the product?

Does the workflow make sense?

Is this worth building further?

For that…