Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Word 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Word, click here: Adding Hyperlinks.

Adding Hyperlinks

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated July 3, 2021)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003

Word allow you to add hyperlinks to your documents. This can come in handy if want active links between documents, or if you are creating a Web page using Word. You create hyperlinks by following these steps:

Select the text in your document that you want to use for the hyperlink.
Click on the Insert Hyperlink tool on the toolbar, or choose Hyperlink from the Insert menu. Word displays the Insert Hyperlink dialog box. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Insert Hyperlink dialog box.

The text you selected in step 1 shows up in the Text to Display box, except in Word 97. You can change the text if you want.
In the Link to File or URL box (Word 97), the Type the File or Web Page Name (Word 2000), or the Address box (Word 2002 or Word 2003), specify the address for the page that will be loaded when the user clicks on your hyperlink. Typically this is a URL, but it can also be a document or resource on your system. You can also select an address from the drop-down list or use the Browse button to help locate the resource.
When completed, click on OK.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (1916) applies to Microsoft Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. You can find a version of this tip for the ribbon interface of Word (Word 2007 and later) here: Adding Hyperlinks.

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. Learn more about Allen...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Character Limits for Cells

Excel places limits on how much information you can enter into a cell and how much of that information it will display. ...

Discover More

Changing Outline Heading Level

Working with a document's outline can be a great way to organize your writing. Word provides a variety of tools for ...

Discover More

Calculated Dates

Word makes it easy to insert today's date in a document, but not as easy to insert a date X number of days in the future. ...

Discover More

Comprehensive VBA Guide Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) is the language used for writing macros in all Office programs. This complete guide shows both professionals and novices how to master VBA in order to customize the entire Office suite for their needs. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2010 today!

More WordTips (menu)

Getting Rid of Many Hyperlinks

Need to get rid of hyperlinks that result when you paste information from the Internet into your document? Here's the ...

Discover More

Replacing Plain Text with a Hyperlink

Active hyperlinks can be a desired feature in some types of documents. If you want to replace multiple instances of plain ...

Discover More

Hyperlinks in Protected Documents

Need the ability to follow a hyperlink in a document you've protected? If so, you'll need to examine different ways of ...

Discover More

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, 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.

Notify me about new comments ONLY FOR THIS TIP

Notify me about new comments ANYWHERE ON THIS SITE

Hide my email address

What is 0 + 7?

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