Use data linking in Lucidchart to create powerful, data-driven visualizations by importing data sets from Google Sheets, Excel spreadsheets, and CSVs. You can also refresh or replace your data sets as you continue to make changes and need your diagram to reflect the most up-to-date information.

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*If you are a FedRAMP user, importing a data set from Google Sheets is not available. You can import a data set from Excel or CSV.

Import a data set into Lucidchart

To import a data set from Google Sheet, Excel, or CSV into a Lucidchart document, follow these steps:

Open a Lucidchart document.
Click the Data Panel icon in the left bar.
Click Link Data.
In the window that appears, click Import Your Data.
Select the file type (Google Sheets, Excel, or CSV) that you would like to import, or select to choose a file that you have already uploaded to Lucidchart.
Click Choose File.
- If you are importing data from a Google Sheet, you will need to grant Lucidchart permission to access your Google account. Click Authenticate, select your Google account, and click Allow to grant this permission.
Select an Excel or CSV file from your device and click Open.
- If you are importing data from a Google Sheet, select a sheet and click Select.
Select which pages of your spreadsheet you want to import and click Next.
After importing your data, Lucidchart will prompt you to identify the header row of your data set. Select your header row.
Click Next.
In the next window, Lucidchart will prompt you to select a column of your data that contains reference keys for the contents of each row. Reference keys allow Lucidchart to keep track of your data even after you make structural changes to it, such as removing, adding, or reordering rows. Select the column that contains unique identifiers, if you have one.
- If you do not add a reference key upon import, you will not be able to add one in your document later unless you go through the entire import flow again.
Click Finish.

Manage a data set

Once you have imported a data set, its data will display in the bottom section of the data panel to the left of the canvas. You can open or hide this panel at any time by clicking the Data Panel icon

Update or delete a data set

If your data set comes from a Google Sheet, updates to your spreadsheet will automatically sync to Lucidchart every 30 seconds.

You can also refresh your data set to pull updates manually by clicking the refresh button .

Though updates to an Excel spreadsheet or CSV will not automatically be synced to Lucidchart, you can easily replace your data set with an updated one. To do so, click the manage data button and select Replace Dataset. You can also delete a data set from this menu.

You can also change your data set directly in Lucidchart:

Edit data: Double-click inside a heading or cell to edit its content.
Add a row: Right-click the box to the left of a row and select Insert row above.
Remove a row: Right-click the box to the left of a row and select Delete row.
Add a column: Right-click the box above a column and select Insert column left.
- After you add a column, you also need to add the new data to the linked shapes on the canvas. Read the steps in the Add new data to linked shapes section to learn how.
Remove a column: Right-click the box above a column and select Delete column.

Any edits made to your spreadsheet in Lucidchart will only be represented in Lucidchart and not in the file you uploaded. If you replace or refresh your data set, any changes made directly in Lucidchart will be overridden.

Add new data to linked shapes

Select the linked shapes on the canvas by dragging a box around them.
Click the contextual panel icon at the top-right of the workspace.
Select the Layout tab.
Under “Header Fields,” check the box next to the title of your new column.

Note: Make sure to replace your data set, rather than delete and re-upload, if you would like to preserve any data mappings you have applied to your chart.

Change header row or reference key column

The header row will appear at the top of your data set. The reference key (or unique identifiers) column will be highlighted in gray.

To remove header functionality from your header row, right-click on the header and select Remove Header Row.

To assign a new header row, right-click on the number label to the left of a row and click Make Header Row.

To remove reference key functionality from a column, right-click on the letter label above the column and select Remove Reference Key.

To assign a new reference key column, right-click on the letter label above a column and click Make Reference Key Column.

Manage multiple data sets

Lucidchart allows you to import as many data sets as you would like into the same document so that you can visualize data from multiple sources at once. Click on the name of the data set currently displayed to view a list of all of your imported data sets.

View a different data set by clicking on its name. Import a new one by clicking Add New Dataset.

Expand data with the pop-out panel

For an expanded view of your data set, click the pop-out panel button to move your data set from the left panel to a separate window. You can move and expand this window within the editor according to your needs.

To move it back into the panel, click the pop-out panel button again.

Add custom data

If you do not have a data set to link to your diagram, you can create custom data fields by clicking the contextual panel icon on the far right of the toolbar. Here you can create custom data and link that data to shapes or other parts of your diagram.

To create custom data fields, follow these steps:

Select the shape(s) on the canvas that you would like to add a custom data field to.
Click New Data Field.
Fill out the custom fields.
Click the plus icon for each new field you would like to add.

Learn more: From the contextual panel, you can also attach images to specific shapes on your document. Check out our Attach images and notes to objects in Lucidchart article for more information.

Assign data to document components

Once you have imported a data set, you can assign data to objects, groups of objects, or to your document as a whole.

Note: To allow you to customize the appearance of your data, Lucidchart will not automatically display this data on your document components. The display data on document components section of this article provides a guide for that part of the process.

Assign data to an object

To assign data to an object, follow these steps:

Click the Data Panel icon in the left bar.
Locate the cell or row of data you would like to assign to an object on your canvas.
Drag and drop the cell or row of data onto the object.

Assign data to a group of objects

If you would like to assign data to a group of objects, follow these steps:

Click the Data Panel icon in the left bar.
Select the objects on your canvas that you would like to assign data to.
- You can use Ctrl + click if on a PC, and Command + click if on a Mac, to select a group of objects.
Open the contextual panel, by selecting the contextual panel icon on the far right-hand side of the toolbar.
Drag and drop the cell or row of data into the top half of the contextual panel.

You will then see the custom data has been added in the contextual panel, and that it has been applied to multiple objects that were selected.

Assign data to a page

To assign data to a page of your document, follow these steps:

Click on the canvas (ensure no objects are selected).
Open the contextual panel, by selecting the contextual panel icon on the far right-hand side of the toolbar.
Drag and drop the cell or row of data into the top half of the contextual panel.

The contextual panel will then display the assigned data at the page level.

Assign multiple data fields

You can assign multiple data fields to the same document component; whether that is an object, group of objects, or page. When you assign data to a document component that already has data linked to it, you will see the following pop-up menu.

From here, you can opt to replace the existing assigned data field or keep both data fields. If you opt to keep both, the second data field will show up below the first one in the contextual panel data tab.

Display data on document components

Lucidchart allows you to customize how the data you assign to shapes appears on the canvas.

To display a data label or value on an object, follow these steps:

Select the object on your canvas.
Open the contextual panel, by selecting the contextual panel icon on the far right-hand side of the toolbar.
Hover over the desired row of data in the top half of the contextual panel.
Click the Add Text button that appears.

The data label or value will appear as regular text that you can style and embed in longer text strings. If you replace the data linked to an object with a new row or cell of data, the new data will automatically take on the format and style of the old data.

Pull fill color from Google Sheets

If you add fill color to a cell, column, or row of data in a linked Google Sheet, the color will automatically import to your data in Lucidchart.

To display the fill color on a linked object in your diagram, follow these steps:

Select the object with linked data on your canvas.
Open the contextual panel, by selecting the contextual panel icon on the far right-hand side of the toolbar.
Click the three dot menu icon next to a data value or label.
Select Apply Imported Fill Color.

The fill color will then be applied to the shape on your canvas you selected.

FAQ

What is considered a “data-linked” document?
In this section, we refer to any document that contains imported data as a “data-linked” document. This includes ERDs, org charts, smart containers, account maps, and any other document to which you have imported data from Excel, Google Sheets, BambooHR, AWS, SQL, Salesforce, or a CSV file.

What happens to my data when I share a data-linked document?
If you share a data-linked document with another Lucidchart user, then your collaborator will be able to see the full data set linked to your document.

What if I share my data-linked document as “view only?”
If you share a document as “view-only,” then your collaborator will still see any data you’ve linked to your document, including data that has not been attached to shapes on your canvas. Your collaborator can access this data by making a copy of your data-linked document.

What happens if my collaborator makes a copy of my data-linked document?
If your collaborator makes a copy of your data-linked document, then they will gain full access to the data set linked to your document.

How can I control who can see the data linked to my document?
If you do not want your collaborator to have access to the data set linked to your document, we recommend that you make a copy of the document (“File” > “Make A Copy”) and completely remove any sensitive data before you share the document.

Alternatively, you can also Export a Lucid document to a PDF, PNG, JPEG, or SVG file and then share this file with your collaborator. Additionally, you can Publish a Lucid document and use the area selection feature if you only want to share a portion of your document.

What are the best practices for data protection in Lucidchart?
We recommend that you use password protection whenever you publish your documents to secure your documents and data. Furthermore, please be cautious if you use public access links because anyone who finds the link will gain access to your document and data.

Learn more: You can find more information about the security features available for enterprise accounts in our Lucid admin panel: Security settings article.

What happens if I drag a cell or row of data onto the canvas?
If you drop a row or cell onto an empty part of your canvas, you will be prompted to auto-create an object from the data. You can select from the suggested shapes, or choose a shape from one of the shape libraries associated with your document.

Can I add shapes with assigned data to a custom shape library?
Yes. After assigning data to an object or group of objects, you can add them to a custom shapes library by right-clicking on the shape and then selecting Add to Custom Shape Library.

Learn more: For more information about creating and managing custom shape libraries, please refer to our Shape libraries in Lucidchart article.

Why did my data not display on the object properly?
Ensure that you have properly followed the steps as outlined in the display data on document components section of this article. Also, note that Lucidchart only supports single line headers. If you have a line break, you may not be able to successfully insert your data. You will need to reformat the data to fit within these parameters.

Why did my data disappear from my object?
If you are using Google Sheets, keep in mind that if you make changes on the sheet those changes will auto refresh to your linked data on a Lucidchart board. Changes to key data set components like the header row or referency key will break the link between your data set and shapes on the Lucidchart canvas. If you do need to make a major change to the structure of your Google Sheet, make sure that you are prepared to manually update the affected shapes with linked data on your Lucidchart diagram.

Resources

To learn more about this feature, explore the additional resources below. These resources are available in English only.

Community post

Use data linking to visualize project communication

Courses | 15 min

Customizing Your Visual Data

Visualizing Your Data

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