How to Create an Org Chart in Google Sheets
Google Sheets has a little-known superpower: it can generate org charts directly from your spreadsheet data. Unlike Excel's SmartArt (which is a drawing tool), Google Sheets creates charts from data — which means adding a person is as simple as adding a row. Here's how to do it, and where the limits are.
Step-by-Step: Org Chart from Google Sheets Data
Step 1: Set Up Your Data
Create a spreadsheet with at least two columns. The first column is the person's name (or name + title), and the second column is who they report to. Optionally add a third column for a tooltip.
| Name | Reports To | Title |
|---|---|---|
| Sarah Chen | CEO | |
| Mike Johnson | Sarah Chen | VP Engineering |
| Lisa Park | Sarah Chen | VP Sales |
| Alex Rivera | Mike Johnson | Senior Engineer |
| Jordan Lee | Mike Johnson | Engineer |
| Emma Wilson | Lisa Park | Account Executive |
Important: The CEO (or top person) should have an empty "Reports To" cell. This tells Google Sheets they're the root of the tree.
Step 2: Select Your Data
Highlight all your data including headers. Make sure to include the Name and Reports To columns at minimum.
Step 3: Insert the Chart
Go to Insert → Chart. In the Chart Editor panel on the right, click the Chart type dropdown and scroll down to "Other". Select "Organizational chart".
Google Sheets will immediately generate a chart from your data.
Step 4: Customize
In the Chart Editor, switch to the Customize tab. You can adjust:
- Size: Small, Medium, or Large nodes
- Color: Node fill color and selected color
That's... basically it. Google Sheets' org chart customization options are very limited.
Step 5: Show Name + Title in Each Box
To display both name and title in each node, combine them in the first column with an HTML line break. In a helper column, use:
=A2 & "<div style='color:gray;font-size:small'>" & C2 & "</div>"
Then use that helper column as your chart data source. Google Sheets' org chart supports basic HTML formatting in node labels.
The Good: Why Google Sheets Org Charts Are Handy
- Data-driven. Add a row, get a new person on the chart. This is fundamentally better than drawing boxes manually.
- Free. Google Sheets is free. No subscriptions, no trials.
- Collaborative. Multiple people can edit the underlying data, and the chart updates for everyone in real time.
- Already have the data. If your team list is already in Google Sheets, you're one click away from an org chart.
- Interactive. You can click nodes to collapse/expand branches — a nice touch that Excel SmartArt doesn't offer.
The Bad: Where It Falls Short
- Ugly output. There's no way around it — Google Sheets org charts look dated. The styling options are minimal (you get to pick two colors), and the default appearance is basic.
- No photos. You can't add headshots or avatars. For larger teams where people don't know each other by sight, this is a significant limitation.
- No dotted lines. Secondary reporting relationships, matrix structures, and cross-functional links can't be represented.
- No export to PDF or PowerPoint. You can download the chart as a PNG image, but there's no PDF or PowerPoint export. For board presentations, you'll need to paste the image into slides manually.
- Limited layout control. You can't adjust how the chart is laid out. With 50+ people, nodes become tiny and the chart becomes hard to read.
- No departments or color-coding. You can't color different departments differently. Everyone gets the same box color.
- Breaks at scale. Around 40-50 people, the chart becomes too wide or too small to read. There's no zoom, search, or filtering.
Google Sheets org charts are the best free option if you need something in 5 minutes and don't care how it looks. For anything you'll share with executives, clients, or new hires, you need something better.
The Better Path: Google Sheets → OrgCanvas
The ideal workflow combines Google Sheets' data management with a proper visualization tool:
- Keep your team data in Google Sheets (or export from your HRIS)
- Download as CSV
- Import into OrgCanvas — columns are auto-detected
- Get a beautiful, professional org chart with photos, departments, dotted lines, and auto-layout
- Share a live link or export to PDF/PowerPoint
When your data changes, re-import the CSV. The whole process takes under a minute.
Your Google Sheets data → a beautiful org chart
Export your Google Sheet as CSV and import it into OrgCanvas. Auto-detected columns, auto-layout, done in 60 seconds.
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