How to Put Survey Points from Excel into Google Earth
Last updated 26 September 2026
Step by step from a spreadsheet of eastings, northings and levels to pins in Google Earth: pick the grid, check a known point, save KML or KMZ.
What you need
- A spreadsheet (Excel or CSV) with one row per point: a point name, easting, northing and, if you have it, the level.
- The name or EPSG code of the coordinate system the numbers are in.
- Google Earth Pro on a computer, or Google Earth in a web browser or on a phone.
1. Tidy the sheet
Put a heading row at the top. Headings such as Station, Easting, Northing and Elevation (or E, N, RL, Level, Z) are recognised automatically. Other columns — code, remarks, date — are kept and can be shown when a point is clicked in Google Earth. A sheet without headings works too; you then pick the column order.
2. Find out which grid the numbers are on
Easting and northing only mean something on a particular grid. Look at the drawing's title block, the survey report or the control sheet for the grid name or EPSG code — for example Dubai DLTM (EPSG:3997), Qatar National Grid (EPSG:2932) or a UTM zone. Our grid pages list the common ones with their parameters. If you only know roughly where the site is, the app can list the grids used at that latitude and longitude.
3. Load the points
Open the web app (or the Windows app) and paste the rows copied from Excel, or open the CSV file. The table on the right shows exactly what was read, so you can compare it with your sheet.
4. Choose the coordinate system
Under Coordinate system, search for the grid name or its EPSG code and pick it. The shift from the grid's datum to WGS 84, which Google Earth uses, is applied for you. The map then shows where the points land.
5. Check one point you know
Before saving, look at a point whose position you know — a benchmark, a building corner — on the map. If it's in the right place, the rest will be too. Quality checks also flag points shot twice, levels that jump and rows with no level.
6. Save and open in Google Earth
- Press Save KML, or Save KMZ if you've attached photos or custom markers.
- In Google Earth Pro, double-click the file or use File → Open.
- In Google Earth on the web, open Projects → New project → Import KML file from computer.
Click any pin to see its details: name, coordinates, level and whichever columns you chose to show.
If the points land in the wrong place
- In the sea or another country: the wrong zone, or easting and northing columns swapped.
- A few hundred metres out: an older or local grid rather than the national one — check the drawing.
- Hundreds of kilometres out: feet read as metres, or metres as feet.
- A few metres out, consistently: a datum difference or a site grid; calibrate on known control points.
The free web app converts up to 50 points per file; the Windows app has no limit.
Try it with your own sheet