Excel, just like other Office products, allows for more interactivity with the use of hyperlinks. Hyperlink support was added to Excel to link files and website URLs. In Excel, creating a hyperlink is as simple as typing in a valid URL, and pressing the Enter key. Excel can detect URLs and email addresses, and turn them automatically into hyperlinks. However, there are more ways to do this, which can be helpful in certain scenarios. In this article, we’re going to show you how to add hyperlinks in Excel.
Add hyperlinks using AutoFormat
As you might already know, entering a valid URL or an email address, and then pressing the Enter key converts the string into a clickable hyperlink.
This comes as a part of the AutoCorrect feature, which also highlights any spelling errors in other text fields. Although, typically useful, this feature can be unwanted in some scenarios. Press the Ctrl + Z combination to revert back the auto-formatting action. Alternatively, you can turn this feature completely off. You can find the setting in the following path: Excel Options > Proofing > AutoCorrect Options > AutoFormat as You Type.
Add hyperlinks in Excel manually
Another option is adding hyperlinks manually. Although, this method requires a little more effort to, it has some unique advantages:
- You can give a friendly name to your hyperlink instead of showing the actual URL.
- Internal links can be established. You can navigate through your worksheets using these internal hyperlinks.
- You do not have to necessarily use cells only - it is possible to add hyperlinks into images or visualizations.
Let's see how you can add a hyperlink manually:
- Right-click on a cell, a visualization, or an image
- Click Hyperlink
- Fill in the Address input
- (Optional) Enter a friendly name into Text to display
- Press Enter to insert a hyperlink
Add hyperlinks using the HYPERLINK Function
HYPERLINK function is another reliable way of adding hyperlinks in Excel. It is a simple function that allows you to convert a string value into a hyperlink, and this method also has friendly name support. The function presents a dynamic approach which means that you can generate hyperlinks from strings generated by other formulas.
The HYPERLINK function uses a simple syntax with 2 arguments:
The link_location argument is required, and should include a valid location string. This can be a URL, an email address, or internal Excel path syntax (e.g. #Sheet3!B5).
The [friendly_name], on the other hand, is an optional argument. If you provide a string for this argument, you will see the text you've entered here, instead of the location path. When omitted, the actual link will be displayed.
