Overview


A Pack is an extension that adds new powers to your doc. Packs work by supplementing the core building blocks of Coda, so you can customize how your doc looks, works, and integrates. Makers have created Packs that do everything from integrate your Salesforce contacts into a CRM table, to generate memes from your meeting notes! You can even create your own Packs or use ones from the Gallery.

How to install Packs

If you don't know which pack you want to use, you can add Packs to your doc by either:

  • Check out all the different packs by going to coda.io/packs, searching for the pack you're interested in, and then clicking the "add to doc" button when you're ready to add it to your doc.

  • or if you're already in a doc, click the "Insert" button in the upper right corner of your doc and select "Packs & import": 

If you know the name of the pack you wish to use you can also add it by typing / onto the document canvas followed by the name of the Pack you want to use:

After going through either of the above options, you should see a pop-up screen giving an overview of the pack. You can scroll down to learn more about the pack, such as what formulas it has. If you're ready to proceed, you can click the blue "Sign in to add to doc" button.

After clicking the blue "Sign in to add to doc" you will see a menu asking you to either select an account to use with the pack. If you have already used an account to set up the pack in another doc in the workspace, that account should appear in the menu.

Select the account you'd like to use, and then determine who can see the data from this Pack:

You'll be asked to decide who can view the application data from the account you're using to set up the pack.

Then you'll then decide who can take actions using the connected account:

You'll have three options to choose from:

  1. Nobody - You'll choose this option if you never want anyone else in the doc to take actions in the connected app. For example, you want everyone to view Github pull requests in your project tracker, but not take actions on them.

  2. Only you - You'll choose this option if you are comfortable with people taking action in the connected app, but only using their login. For example, everyone can use their own Intercom accounts to respond to customer questions.

  3. Anyone this doc is shared with - You'll choose this option if you are comfortable with everyone using the same account. This will be the best option for any account that everyone shares - for example, a team calendar.

Once you install a Pack, you'll see in the Packs panel:

You can then adjust your settings by clicking the Pack and exploring the Settings menu:

Note: To see what Coda can access with Packs, check out this article.


How to use Packs

Once you install a Pack, there are four ways you can interact with them:

  1. Adding a Packs Table

  2. Accessing live data from links

  3. Custom Pack Buttons

  4. Custom Pack Formulas

Adding a Packs Table

You can then add a Packs Table by adding via the Building Blocks menu in the right-hand panel. Find out more about which Packs have Tables and more details on setting them up here:

One of the most powerful parts of Packs is that you'll be able to see all the information from URLs. For example, if you have a Table with links to Intercom conversations, you can then call on information about that link.

You can then automatically add columns using the data from the link. You'll also see pack-specific column formats to choose from when adding a new column to your table:

Custom Pack Buttons

Under the / insert menu (accessed by typing / into your document), when you select the button option, you'll see pre-packaged buttons based on your installed Packs. For example, for my Intercom Pack, I can add a button to create conversations. If you have multiple Packs, you'll see all of them listed in this menu as well:


You can also include Pack buttons in your tables. To begin, choose the button column format:

Then, you can customize the action the button will take using your installed Packs.

Custom Pack Formulas

Like any other part of Coda's formula language, you can type the Pack name to access its special formula building blocks. For Figma, I'll see the following:

Packs examples

Pack 1 - Using Slack to request updates

To set up the requesting update workflow, you'll want to add a button column to your task table with the following settings:

  • Label - "Request Update"

  • Action - "Slack: Post Message"

  • Account - Whichever Slack account you want to use for delivery

  • Content - If you want to include the name of the specific task, use the following formula: = Concatenate([Task Name Column],"what you would like your message to say") 

  • Channel - Which Slack channel you would like to post to (make sure you include a # beforehand). If you'd like to send it as a direct message type @ and the person's Slack handle

Pack 2 - Using GitHub to manage engineering tasks

Just like in the Slack Pack example, you'll add a button to a column:

  • Label  - "Merge"

  • Action - "GitHub: Merge pull request"

  • Account - Whichever Github account you want to use for merging

  • Pull Request URL - The name of the column with your Github URL

Pack 3 - Using Gmail to send updates

For this example you'll simply add one button to the canvas.

  • Label - "Send weekly update"

  • Action  - "Gmail: Send email" (or "Gmail: Create draft" if you want to do further customization)

  • Account - Whichever Gmail account you'd like to send from

  • To - The email address or addressed you would like to send to

  • Subject - "Weekly Update"

  • Content - =[Task Table Name] 

How to Remove Packs

To uninstall a pack, follow the instructions below:

  1. Visit the Explore section of your doc

  2. Select Packs & Import

  3. Select the pack you would like to remove

  4. Click on the vertical "..." in the top right corner

  5. Remove Pack


Making your Own Packs

Curious to make your own Pack? Check out the Packs SDK!

FAQs

How can I learn about what a pack does?

The best way to learn about what a pack does is to go to coda.io/packs and search out the pack's listing page. Those pages should be updated with a general overview of what the pack does in addition to the specific building blocks associated with it. If you think there's something missing, please reach out to the support team!

There are a few things to check if this happens. First, check that your Pack is installed and your connection is working by clicking the Packs icon and clicking the Pack that you're troubleshooting.

Next, try pasting the link into a new column. The column format associated with that link will be shown in the column header. When pasting into an existing column the link should reference data of the same format.

For example, the Spotify Pack offers three column formats, Album, Track and Playlist. The Spotify links usually contain a hint as to the format of their referenced data in the URL, e.g. the link open.spotify.com/album/....  refers to an album and should be pasted into a column of format Album.

Why is my Pack-connected doc being slow?

If your doc has more than 10,000 rows with Pack links, you will see a slowing of performance in your doc. We are always working to increase this threshold.

When does Pack data refresh?

This is up to you!

  • For Packs Table look in the Sync Settings and change the frequency, the default is daily.

  • For Pasted URLs, You can choose from Manually or Daily under the Pack's Settings menu.

What if I don't see the Pack I want?

We are always looking for Pack requests! If you have a Pack idea, go here to request a pack.

Which packs can I use in a Free plan?

Certain packs are available only in a Pro or Team plan. Some of these can still be used in a Free plan, with a limit on the number of monthly actions taken and only manual data refresh. You can see which packs are available in which plans on our Packs page, or by clicking Add a new Pack inside Coda. 

Need more help troubleshooting your Pack?

How will I know a change has been made to a Pack that I have installed?

When a Pack maker updates a Pack - or “releases” a new version of a Pack - you will have immediate access to these changes. Pack makers are asked to document what changes were made in the change logs.

How can I learn more about the security of Coda Packs?

Looking for some inspiration? Check out our Packs category in the gallery.

Did this answer your question?