When it comes to storing vast chunks of numerical or statistical data online, there’s nothing better than Google Sheets. It helps users store, calculate, and analyze data for various purposes. But, if you need to navigate one datasheet to another, you must know how to link cells in Google Sheets. Hyperlinking in Google sheets is one of the most critical factors in terms of formatting a document.

Google Sheets is the go-to online tool when it comes to huge data be it numerical or statistical. You can merge cells in Google Sheets, and also hide columns for a better analysis when it comes to how to handle the data.

How To Link Cells In Google Sheets For Easy Referencing

Adding references in our data helps to keep track of the sources we refer to while making a datasheet. Linking cells is an essential way to keep track of the data. Having proper referencing helps mainly while doing revisions of the data. Without further ado, let’s take a look at how to link cells in Google Sheets.

How To Hyperlink In Google Sheets

Hyperlinks are the links of any particular pages that you want to attach to your document as a point of reference. Adding hyperlinks is a straightforward process and can be done with just a few simple clicks.

First and foremost, select the cell in which you want to add the hyperlink; make sure that the selected cell isn’t empty.

Then, right-click on that cell and select Insert link from the drop-down menu. You can also use the Ctrl+K keyboard shortcut to carry out this step.

Once it is done, you will see a small dialog box asking you for the link.

Open the link inserting dialog box for how to link cells in google sheets
Open the link inserting dialog box

Copy and paste the link of reference in this dialog box and press Enter.

Paste the link and click on Apply
Paste the link and click on Apply

The cell’s content will be converted into a blue color, indicating that you have successfully added the link to the cell.

view the google sheets hyperlink
Check the hyperlink cell

Users can also click on the cell and access the linking dialog box by going to the Insert tab in the menu bar. This method is the most straightforward answer to how to link cells in Google Sheets.

How To Hyperlink Cells In Google Sheets Using Formula

While the method mentioned above is the best way to add links to cells, users can also choose to learn how to add links to cells in Google Sheets using the hyperlinking formula.

To start with, select a cell to which you want to add a link; make sure it isn’t empty. Then, in the formula bar above, enter the following function.

HYPERLINK(URL, LINK_LABEL)

The Hyperlink function consists of two parts:

  1. URL – This is the URL of the page you want to reference or link to the cell.
  2. LINK_LABEL – This is the text written in the selected cell. You need to specify the text in double quotation marks.

The image below shows how to use the Hyperlink function to hyperlink in Google Sheets.

hyperlink in google sheets using formula
Add link using the Hyperlink formula

Once you enter the function for the selected cell, press Enter.

Now, you will see that the link has been inserted in the cell. When it comes to adding hyperlink in Google Sheets, this is a rarely used method by users.

How To Create Links In The Same Google Sheets Document

At times, it so happens that users need to refer to data from sheets that are a part of the same Google Sheets document. In such cases, they can learn how to link cells in Google Sheets using the formulas mentioned above, albeit with specific tweaking.

First, select the cell in which you want to insert the link and open the linking dialog box by following any of the methods mentioned above.

Once you open the dialog box, click on the blank space in the Link section. Choose Sheets in this spreadsheet from the menu.

open the link insertion dialog box
Select the sheets in this spreadsheet option

Doing so will open a list of all the sheets in that spreadsheet. Select the sheet that you want and press the Enter key.

select the datasheet
Select the datasheet

The cell’s content will turn blue, indicating that the link has successfully been inserted in the cell.

View the result
Check the hyperlinked cells 

How To Link Multiple Cells

Once you get the knack of how to link cells in Google Sheets, linking multiple cells isn’t tricky.

First and foremost, select a cell and open the linking dialog box. Click on the blank space in the Link section to open the drop-down menu.

Then, click on the ‘Select a range of cells to link’ option.

select the cell range option
Click Select a range of cells to link

Now, select the range of cells you want to hyperlink in the Google Sheets document. Then, press OK to confirm the selection.

select the range of cells and click ok
Select the range of cells and click on OK

The selected range is then linked with the reference you provide for it. The only drawback of this method is that you have to hyperlink the entire Google sheet to a cell. You cannot connect a particular cell from a different sheet to a cell in the current sheet.

Conclusion

Interlinking is an integral part of data formatting in Google Sheets and Google Docs. Linking cells with appropriate links help you provide references for the data in a particular cell. Doing so enables your subordinates to check the source of the data mentioned in a specific cell and determine whether it is correct or incorrect.

There are various queries and answers when it comes to how to link cells in Google Sheets. You can learn to connect different web pages to cells using the Insert tab or the Hyperlink formula. Google Sheets also allows you to hyperlink different sheets in the same document to a cell.

Using the Insert tab to attach links to cells is probably the easiest way to add references in Google Sheets. That being said, users can always go for methods that suit their convenience and requirements.

(Updated on 7th January 2021)