Activating a Hyperlink

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated November 13, 2021)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


Any Web-savvy person knows how to use hyperlinks on a Web page. When you are using a Web browser and you move your mouse pointer over a hyperlink, it changes to a pointing hand. When you click on the mouse button, the Web browser jumps to the Web address that is the target of the hyperlink.

Excel is no different. If you have defined hyperlinks in your workbooks, you use them by moving the mouse pointer over them. The pointer changes to the same pointing hand you use in your Web browser. When you click on the hyperlink, Excel jumps to the location. If necessary, Excel even opens the application program required to display the target. For instance, if the hyperlink is to a location on the Web, your Web browser is opened. If the hyperlink is to a Word document, then Word is opened.

It is interesting to note that you can move the mouse pointer over a hyperlink, and if you leave it poised there (when it is shaped as a pointing hand), a ToolTip appears beside the pointer to indicate the target address associated with the hyperlink. This is a handy way to tell where clicking your mouse on a hyperlink would take you, before actually taking the plunge.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2140) applies to Microsoft Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Preserving Bookmarks During Replace Operations

When you do a search and replace operation in Word, it is possible that you could inadvertently wipe out a bookmark or ...

Discover More

Word and Character Count Information

Using fields you can easily insert both the word and character counts for a document into the document itself. Here's how ...

Discover More

Highlighting Every Thousandth Character

Not satisfied with the detail provided by the Word Count feature in Word? Perhaps you want to actually know where every ...

Discover More

Best-Selling VBA Tutorial for Beginners Take your Excel knowledge to the next level. With a little background in VBA programming, you can go well beyond basic spreadsheets and functions. Use macros to reduce errors, save time, and integrate with other Microsoft applications. Fully updated for the latest version of Office 365. Check out Microsoft 365 Excel VBA Programming For Dummies today!

More ExcelTips (menu)

Changing Huge Numbers of Hyperlinks

Need to change the various targets of a group of hyperlinks? Getting at the underlying link can seem challenging, but it ...

Discover More

Showing Visited Hyperlinks

Many people like to use Excel to keep track of lists of hyperlinks. Want to keep a permanent record of which hyperlinks ...

Discover More

Editing a Hyperlink

Excel will cheerfully keep track of all sorts of hyperlinks for you. If you want to change the hyperlink in some way, ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 7 - 2?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


This Site

Got a version of Excel that uses the menu interface (Excel 97, Excel 2000, Excel 2002, or Excel 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.