How to Add a Hyperlink to a PowerPoint – 2 Easy Methods
(Note: This tutorial on how to add a Hyperlink to a PowerPoint is suitable for PowerPoint 2013 and later versions including Office 365)
PowerPoint presentations are becoming more than conventional slides representing the project, sales chart, and profit analysis. PowerPoint slides are a professional way of conveying information to business groups and a tool for creative minds.
The improvisations are possible using hyperlinks. With hyperlinks, you can:
- Add links to any webpage that contains the data you want to direct readers to the relevant information,
- Jump to the next/previous slide,
- Jump to a particular slide from another PowerPoint presentation,
- Add a link to open a local file from your PC, and
- Open a video file from an online platform.
In this article, I will show you how to add a hyperlink to a Powerpoint in simple steps.
You’ll learn:
- What is Hyperlinking in PowerPoint?
- Do Hyperlinks Work on Any Object?
- Hyperlink in PowerPoint with an Example
- Ways to Add a Hyperlink to Your Slide
Related reads:
How to Change Slide Size in PowerPoint? A Simple Guide
How to Save PowerPoint as Video? A Step-by-Step Guide
How to Add Notes to PowerPoint? 6 Easy Steps
What is Hyperlinking in PowerPoint?
Before we proceed, let us first discuss what hyperlinking is for. Hyperlinking is giving additional information to a selected text or object so that for every interaction with the text/object, the viewer is directed to the relevant information explained in detail for every interaction with the text/object.
For example, hyperlinking a text on any slide will highlight and underline the text containing the link, and every time the viewer clicks on the text, it will open the resource attached to it.
Do Hyperlinks Work on Any Object?
It is essential to know what you can hyperlink in PowerPoint. Otherwise, you might be doing everything right and still don’t get the expected result.
You can hyperlink smart objects, text boxes, images, and anything you can click on your slide. Hyperlinks can be divided as follows.
- Text hyperlink – Use text to link your website or file.
- Image hyperlink – Use the image to link to another resource.
- Webpage address hyperlink – Use the full website address as the hyperlink.
- Email hyperlink – Use the link to send an email directly from the presentation.
Also, note that you’ll be able to hyperlink either the text or the object when the text is placed inside the object/smart shape.
Hyperlink in PowerPoint with an Example
To add a hyperlink to a PowerPoint, let’s create a presentation and use a text or an object from the slide for demonstration.
- Open Microsoft Office > PowerPoint and choose New blank Presentation.
- Open the PPT you want to add a hyperlink or create a sample presentation to try it out.
- Once done, select a text from your slide by dragging the mouse or use the arrow keys to highlight the text by holding the Shift key.
Select the image or object you want to hyperlink if you have opened an existing presentation.
Ways to Add a Hyperlink to a PowerPoint
You can add a hyperlink to a PowerPoint presentation in two different ways.
- Using the Insert Tab
- Using the Keyboard Shortcut
Using the Insert Tab
To hyperlink the selected text/object in your presentation,
- Go to Insert Tab, and under the Links section, you will find the Action icon. Note that you can access the icon only when you select the text.
- Clicking on the Action icon will open the Action Settings dialog box.
- Under the Mouse Click tab, click on the Hyperlink to option. Once done, you can hyperlink the text to multiple locations within the slide, another presentation, or even to a local file.
- For instance, let’s choose the URL option to direct the reader from the current slide to a particular website (say: simonsezit.com).
- Manually enter the link or paste the website in the hyperlink to the URL box and click OK to add a hyperlink to your selected text successfully.
- The hyperlink works perfectly when you start a Slideshow and interact with the respective text/image during the Slideshow.
- Also, note that you can’t access the link just by clicking on the text on your slides page. It works when you perform the Ctrl+Click action.
Suggested reads:
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Using Keyboard Shortcuts
No matter what function we learn to perform in PowerPoint, the keyboard shortcut always sticks with us.
- You can hyperlink any text/object you want using the shortcut Ctrl + K.
- A dialog box appears with the list of hyperlink options, and as discussed earlier, you can direct the text to a webpage, local file, or new document or send an email.
- Paste the link in the Address bar and hit OK.
- Now, clicking on the text will hyperlink to the entered webpage address.
Also read:
How to Insert GIF into PowerPoint? 3 Easy Ways
How to Insert PDF into PowerPoint? 3 Easy Ways
How to Link Excel to PowerPoint? 3 Easy Ways
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Hyperlink a tool in PowerPoint?
Hyperlink in Powerpoint is a function that allows readers to jump to the leading content/resource by interacting with the text/image/object that has been hyperlinked.
How do I use Hyperlink effectively?
Though hyperlinks are generally the more interactive part of the slide, adding a lot of hyperlinks will exhaust the reader. Therefore, add hyperlinks only to the essential resource relevant to the presentation.
How to insert links to text using the keyboard shortcuts?
You can add a hyperlink to a PowerPoint presentation by selecting the text and pressing Ctrl+K. This shortcut will ask for the link/resource to paste on the highlighted text.
How to make a simple text hyperlink look unique and identifiable?
You can add many formatting options to your anchor text, like:
1. changing the font
2. using Bold and Italic style writing (Simonsezit) (Simonsezit)
3. Changing the Font size.
Once you add a hyperlink to a text, it automatically underlines and colors the text in blue.
Summing Up
Coming up with creative and improvised ways to present your project to make it unique and understandable is the challenge of this generation. While PowerPoint offers many functions and tools to improve your presentation, hyperlinking is one of the functions that you must add to your list.
In this article, we saw how to add a hyperlink to a PowerPoint in different ways. Make your projects stand out from the rest to stay competitive in your area of expertise.
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Simon Calder
Chris “Simon” Calder was working as a Project Manager in IT for one of Los Angeles’ most prestigious cultural institutions, LACMA.He taught himself to use Microsoft Project from a giant textbook and hated every moment of it. Online learning was in its infancy then, but he spotted an opportunity and made an online MS Project course - the rest, as they say, is history!
