How to Add URL in Tableau Dashboard

Adding a clickable URL to your Tableau dashboard unlocks a powerful layer of interactivity, turning a static report into a dynamic hub for action and further exploration. Instead of just presenting data, you can guide users to external resources, detailed reports, or related applications with a single click. This guide will walk you through exactly how to embed links in your dashboards, from basic static links to dynamic URLs that change based on your data.

Why Bother Adding URLs to Your Tableau Dashboards?

Before we jump into the "how," let's quickly cover the "why." Integrating URLs into your dashboard isn't just a neat trick, it serves several practical purposes that can dramatically improve its usability:

• Provide Deeper Context: Link directly to source documents, glossaries, or more detailed reports. If your dashboard summarizes regional sales, a user could click on a region to open up the full, granular sales spreadsheet for that specific area.
• Enable Direct Action: Connect your data to operational systems. For example, a user viewing a list of at-risk customer accounts could click a customer's name to open their profile directly in Salesforce or your CRM.
• Streamline Research: Allow users to investigate data points without leaving the analytical flow. A dashboard tracking brand mentions could have links that perform a Google search for the specific mention, allowing a marketing manager to immediately see the context.
• Improve an App-like Experience: Use URLs to navigate between different dashboards or sheets within your Tableau workbook, creating a more cohesive and intuitive experience for users.

The Primary Method: Using URL Actions

Tableau's go-to feature for creating hyperlinks is called a URL Action. An Action is essentially a rule you create that says, "When a user does X on this part of the dashboard, then do Y." In this case, Y is "opening a web page." Actions allow you to build dynamic links that incorporate values directly from your data visualizations.

Let’s walk through setting one up step-by-step.

Step 1: Open the Actions Menu

First, navigate to the dashboard where you want to add the link. From the top menu bar, click on Dashboard and then select Actions... from the dropdown menu. This will open the Actions configuration dialog box.

Step 2: Add a URL Action

In the Actions window, click the blue button labeled Add Action > and then choose Go to URL... from the list. This tells Tableau you want to create an action that opens a web browser.

Step 3: Configure Your URL Action

This is where the magic happens. You’ll be presented with a new window with several options that define how your link will behave. Let’s break it down:

• Name: Give your action a descriptive name. This helps you keep track of your actions, especially if you have multiple on one dashboard. Something like "Link to Google Search" or "Open Salesforce Record" is perfect.
• Source Sheets: Select which worksheet(s) on your dashboard should trigger this action. If you have a map of states, you would select that map worksheet here.
• Run action on: This determines how the user triggers the link. You have three choices:
• URL: This is the most important part - the link itself. You can create both static and dynamic URLs here.

https://www.google.com/search?q=<Company Name>

When a user clicks on a specific company in your chart, Tableau automatically replaces <Company Name> with the actual name (e.g., "Acme Corp") and opens a Google search for it.

• URL Target: Decide where the link should open. Ticking "New Browser Tab" is highly recommended for external websites so users don’t lose their place on your dashboard.

Once everything is configured, click OK twice to close the windows and save your new action.

Practical Use Cases for Dashboard URLs

Theory is one thing, but let's look at a few practical examples.

1. Link to Specific Product Pages from a Sales Chart

Imagine you have a bar chart showing sales by product. You want your sales team to be able to click on a product and go directly to its page on your Shopify store.

• Scenario: Your data source has a field called "Product Name" and another called "Product SKU".
• Configuration: In the URL Action settings, you'd set the URL to something like:

https://www.yourshopifystore.com/products/<Product Name>

Or, if your site uses SKUs in the URL:

https://www.yourshopifystore.com/inventory/<Product SKU>

• Result: Clicking on the bar for "Awesome Widget" now automatically opens its product page.

2. Link an Image to Your Company’s Homepage

This is one of the simplest use cases. Many dashboards include a company logo, and it’s good practice to make it a clickable link to your website.

• Scenario: You've added a logo to your dashboard using the "Image" object from the Dashboard pane.
• Configuration: This doesn't even require a URL Action. Simply click on the image object once it's on your dashboard. In the dialog box that appears, you’ll see fields for "Set URL" and "Alt Text." Enter your company's homepage in the "Set URL" field.
• Result: Anyone who clicks your logo will be taken to your website in a new tab.

3. Link to a Customer's Record in your CRM

Help your account managers go from insight to action instantly. A dashboard displaying monthly recurring revenue (MRR) by client can become an actionable tool.

• Scenario: Your data includes a "Customer ID," which is the unique identifier used within your CRM (e.g., Salesforce, HubSpot).
• Configuration: Most CRMs have a predictable URL structure for records. Your action URL might be:

https://yourcompany.lightning.force.com/lightning/r/Account/<Customer ID>/view

• Result: When an account manager sees a customer's MRR has dropped, they can click that customer on the chart and be taken straight to their Salesforce page to investigate or log a call.

Bonus Tips for Taking Your Hyperlinks Further

Use Multiple Values in a Single URL

You’re not limited to one placeholder in your URL. You can string several together to pass multiple parameters. Simply use the ampersand (&) to separate them, just like in a standard URL query string. This is particularly useful for filtering other web-based reports.

Example: Link to an internal tool filtered by both region and product category.

https://my-internal-bi-tool/reports/sales?region=<Region>&category=<Category>

Add URLs Inside Tooltips for a Cleaner Look

Instead of making an entire mark clickable, you might want the link to appear when a user hovers, giving them the option to click without forcing the action.

1. Create your URL Action as normal, but under "Run action on," select Menu.
2. The name you gave your action (e.g., "Search on Google") will now appear in the tooltip menu by default whenever you hover over a mark in your source sheet. The user can then click that text to open the URL.

This is perfect for dashboards where you might want to provide multiple informational links without cluttering the main view.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

• My Link Doesn't Work! Double-check the URL in the action for typos. The most common mistake is misspelling the placeholder field, so ensure <Region> perfectly matches the field name in your data, including capitalization and spacing. Also, confirm the base URL is correct.
• The Wrong Value is Being Passed: Ensure your Source Sheet is set correctly and that the field you're using in the URL placeholder exists and is distinct for the mark you're clicking.
• URL Encoding Problems: What if a field name has a space, like "New York"? Tableau is pretty smart and usually handles URL encoding automatically (turning "New York" into "New%20York"). If you find it's failing, you may need to create a calculated field in Tableau to replace special characters before using it in your URL action.

Final Thoughts

Learning how to add URLs is a simple skill that fundamentally changes how your dashboards are used. By connecting your charts to other webpages, reports, and applications, you move beyond simple data presentation and create powerful, interactive tools that streamline workflows and empower your users to make faster, more informed decisions.

Setting this up in desktop tools can often feel like a manual chore with lots of windows and configurations to manage. At Graphed, we simplify this entire analytics process. You can connect your marketing, sales, and e-commerce data sources in a few clicks, and then create real-time dashboards just by describing what you want to see in plain English. There’s no need to manually create actions or hunt for URL parameters, we build the interactive experience for you, freeing you up to focus on the insights, not the setup.