Inserting a Hyperlink in Microsoft Excel

In this Excel tutorial, you will learn about inserting a hyperlink in Microsoft Excel.  There are different types of hyperlinks, so we will go over a website hyperlink, an email hyperlink, and a phone hyperlink.  All three will allow you to access external applications from Excel such as a web browser, a default email program, and even a phone call on your smartphone!  Let’s look into it in more detail!

Key Takeaways

• Link to Web Pages, Files, or Cells – Excel lets you insert hyperlinks to websites, documents, email addresses, or specific cells within the workbook.

• Use the Insert Hyperlink Dialog Box – Right-click a cell and choose “Link” or press Ctrl + K to open the hyperlink dialog for easy link creation.

• Clickable Text is Customizable – You can change the display text of the hyperlink to show friendly names like “Click Here” instead of long URLs.

• Hyperlinks Can Trigger Emails – Use the mailto: format (e.g., mailto:[email protected]) to create email-launching links directly from Excel.

• Dynamic Links with HYPERLINK Function – For formula-based linking, use the HYPERLINK function to create clickable links that update dynamically with your data.

Inserting a Website Hyperlink in Microsoft Excel

 You can insert a hyperlink to your website by highlighting the link in the address bar, Right Click, and go to Copy.
Go back to the Excel tab, and Right Click the cell where you want to place the hyperlink.

 

Click Paste. Then, click on the Blue Link to see if it works. 

 Next, Right Click on the hyperlink to view the options for editing.  

 Click Edit Hyperlink.

As you can see, you can customize the Display Text of your hyperlink, and more importantly where the hyperlink leads to on the Where do you want to link to feature. Hit OK. 

Conversely, you can remove the link by right clicking the hyperlink and selecting Remove Hyperlink. 

Inserting an Email Hyperlink in Microsoft Excel

Our next type of hyperlink is the email address. This method would lead your click directly to a draft of an email addressed to the hyperlink email. 

Type an email address into your selected cell. Hit ENTER, and voila, your email hyperlink is created.

Click on the Link and you will be redirected to an Outlook email draft.

Inserting a Phone Hyperlink in Microsoft Excel

Lastly, let’s look at how we can create a phone number hyperlink. 

Type in tel:(phone number) in the cell and hit ENTER. 

Note, that since we are creating this hyperlink on a computer with no calling software, the link will not work to redirect you to a call. Instead, we can open this Excel file on a smartphone, and it will give you the option to call the hyperlink phone number.  

Bring up the file on the mobile version of Excel. Click on the hyperlink and hit Link. Click Open. Your smartphone will bring out an option to Call the hyperlink number. 

 

BONUS TIP: Microsoft Excel HYPERLINK Function

If you have a cell that just has a phone number, Click on another empty cell and input this formula: =HYPERLINK(“tel:” & C4) then hit ENTER. It will now create the contents of that cell into a hyperlink. (*C4 is the cell with the phone number with no formula) If you change that phone number, the hyperlink would change automatically, as well. 

  You can even put a Friendly Name in the formula by inputting: 

=HYPERLINK(“tel:” & C4, “Call Me”) then hit ENTER. 

The Friendly Name of the link is now “Call Me.” 

 

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I insert a hyperlink in a cell?
Right-click the cell and select “Link”, or press Ctrl + K. Then choose the link type (web page, document, email, or place in this document).

Can I link to another sheet in the same workbook?
Yes! Use the “Place in This Document” option to link to a specific cell or named range in another worksheet.

How do I insert a hyperlink using a formula?
Use the HYPERLINK function. For example:
=HYPERLINK("https://example.com", "Visit Site")

Can I remove a hyperlink but keep the text?
Yes! Right-click the hyperlink and choose “Remove Hyperlink” to keep the text without the link.

Do hyperlinks work when I convert the Excel file to PDF?
Yes, hyperlinks typically remain active when saving or exporting your Excel sheet as a PDF, depending on your PDF settings.

There you have it! By inserting hyperlinks you can make your Excel projects more interactive. Stay tuned for more tutorials in this blog!