Using Hyperlinks in Google Data Studio

Google Data Studio is absolutely packed with features, and it can take a while to get accustomed to the number of tools at your disposal. There are many features that you might not be aware of when you first start using Data Studio, amongst all the excitement of creating dynamic charts, tables, and diagrams. One of these features is the ability to add Hyperlinks to the dashboard, attributing these URL links to specific strings of text, and more recently, images.

Adding Hyperlinks To Text

Thankfully, adding hyperlinks to text in Data Studio is quick and simple, and certainly an intuitive process that doesn’t stray from what you’d expect. When in Edit Mode, highlight a string of text from a Textbox Widget, and you’ll see the Text Properties menu appear on the right of your window. This is where you can change the font style, alignment, and formatting of your text, as well as the design of your textbox. The option we’re looking for is Insert Link, and can be found in the Font and Paragraph section at the top of the menu.

When you click on the Insert Link icon, a new menu should pop up. This is essentially our Hyperlink Menu. You can change the Display Text, the URL the text links to, and whether the link will open a new tab. Simply add your link, and click Apply. Your text should now be hyperlinked! But there is one other brilliant feature hidden here: Dynamic Page Links.

Dynamic Page Links

You might have noticed a drop-down menu appear when you clicked on the field to enter your URL link, the “Paste a link, or select a page” field. This brings down a list of both Dynamic Page Links, and Pages In The Report. This is a really handy feature that allows you quickly link internal pages in the report, without the need to find the correct URLs and paste them in each time. Linking to other internal pages can be a great boost to the user experience of a dashboard.

The options for Dynamic Page Links provide even more opportunities to create an intuitive and user-friendly report: First, Previous, Next, and Last. This allows you to link text that will allow the user to navigate the corresponding page, and will dynamically update depending on the page you’re currently on. So, if you want to add Next and Previous buttons to your dashboard, you can paste these across multiple pages without needing to worry about updating the URL each time. A small feature that can save you a lot of time!

How To Hyperlink Images

Thankfully, if you’d like to know how to hyperlink images in Data Studio rather text, then good news: It’s even easier! There used to be quite a workaround to make images clickable, but thankfully this has been significantly streamlined. Click on your Image widget, and you’ll see the Image Properties menu on the right side of your window. Add your link to the Image Link URL field, and hit enter. It is as simple as that.

Using Hyperlinks in your Data Studio reports and dashboards is a small addition that goes a long way towards improving the overall utility and interactivity of your report, whether these link to external resources or internal sections, and whether you’re using text or images to do so.

For more on Google Data Studio, you can follow us on Twitter at @GlowMetrics for regular updates and new features, and check out other articles on the GlowMetrics Blog for more extensive guides and step-by-step walkthroughs.

If you have any questions or want to get in touch, please feel free to leave a comment below or contact us at contact@glowmetrics.com and we’d be happy to help.