Why you’re seeing this error
If you’re signed into more than one Google account in the same browser and the add-on shows a dialog saying “Select Special Cells couldn’t start”, it’s because of how Google handles multiple accounts.
Google Apps Script — the platform the add-on runs on — cannot always figure out which account is the active one when there are multiple accounts signed in. This isn’t a bug in the add-on. It’s a known limitation that affects many Google Sheets add-ons, not just this one.
The internal error code you’d see is SSC-1001 – displayed within the Select Special Cells dialog box.
3 Ways to Fix Multiple Google Accounts error
1. Use a separate Chrome profile (recommended)
This is the cleanest solution and the one I recommend.
- Open Chrome (or the browser where you’ve installed the add-on)
- Click your profile icon (top right)
- Click Add to create a new profile (or login if you’ve already created another profile)
- Give it a name like “Work” or “Sheets”
- Sign into only the Google account you use for this spreadsheet
- Open the spreadsheet from this new profile
- If your add-on is not already installed into your Google account that you just signed in, you will have to install the add-on again.
The add-on will work because there’s only one account in that browser session.
2. Open the spreadsheet in an Incognito window
- Click the three dots menu (top right)
- Choose New Incognito Window
- Sign into your Google account
- Open the spreadsheet
- If your add-on is not already installed into your Google account that you just signed in, you will have to install the add-on again.
Incognito windows start fresh without any saved accounts, so there’s no ambiguity.
3. Sign out of your other accounts
If you prefer not to create a new profile or use incognito:
- Click your profile icon in Chrome
- Click the arrow next to each extra account
- Choose Sign Out
- Keep only the account you need
- Reload the spreadsheet
- The add-on should now work fine.
Other error codes you might see
SSC-1002 — Authorization failed
The add-on couldn’t complete an operation because it doesn’t have the right permissions. Reload the spreadsheet. If prompted, approve the permissions. If the problem continues, remove the add-on from Extensions > Add-ons > Manage add-ons and install it again.
SSC-1003 — Something went wrong
An unexpected error happened. This is usually a temporary glitch. Reload the spreadsheet and try again. If it keeps happening, contact me using the email / support details given below.
SSC-1004 — Operation cancelled
The action was cancelled. Nothing to worry about.
Still having trouble?
If none of the solutions above help, send us an email at support @ sheetcity.com with:
- The error code you see (e.g. SSC-1001)
- What you were doing when the error appeared
- If possible, please provide the steps to reproduce the issue/error
- What browser you’re using (Chrome, Edge, Firefox, etc.)
I’ll help you get it sorted.