The fastest way to link a PDF

Open your Google Doc and highlight the text you want to turn into a link. Press Ctrl+K on Windows or Cmd+K on Mac. A box will appear asking for a URL. Paste the link to your PDF — either a Google Drive link, a direct web URL, or a link from any other cloud storage service — and press Enter. The text is now clickable and points to your PDF.

If you want to link to a specific page within a PDF, add #page=X to the end of the URL, replacing X with the page number. For example, a Google Drive PDF link ending in #page=5 will open the PDF to page 5 when someone clicks it.

Key Takeaways

  • Highlight text in your Google Doc, press Ctrl+K (or Cmd+K on Mac), paste the PDF URL, and press Enter to create a clickable link.
  • Google Drive PDFs, web-hosted PDFs, and links from Dropbox, OneDrive, or Box all work as long as the person clicking has permission to view the file.
  • Add #page=X to the end of a PDF URL to make the link open directly to a specific page instead of the first page.
  • If you upload a PDF to Google Drive and share it with view-only access, anyone with the link can open it without needing a Google account.

Getting the right link to your PDF

The link you paste depends on where your PDF lives. If the PDF is in your Google Drive, right-click the file, select "Get link," and copy the URL that appears. Make sure the sharing settings allow the people who will read your doc to view the PDF — if it is set to "Restricted," only people you have shared it with directly can open it.

If your PDF is hosted on a website, copy the direct link from your browser's address bar. If it is in Dropbox, OneDrive, Box, or another cloud service, find the share button in that service and copy the shareable link. Some services give you a preview link and a download link — use the preview link so the PDF opens in a browser instead of downloading automatically.

Linking to a specific page in a PDF

When you want someone to land on a particular page instead of starting at page 1, add a page anchor to the end of your URL. After you copy your PDF link, go to the end of it and type #page= followed by the page number. For a PDF at https://example.com/report.pdf, the link https://example.com/report.pdf#page=12 opens directly to page 12.

This works with Google Drive PDFs, web-hosted PDFs, and most cloud storage links. Not all PDF viewers support page anchors — if someone clicks the link and it opens to page 1 instead, their viewer does not recognize the anchor. In that case, they will need to navigate to the page manually, but the full PDF will still open.

Changing or removing a link

To edit a link you have already created, click on the linked text and press Ctrl+K (or Cmd+K on Mac). The link box will open showing the current URL. Change it to a new URL and press Enter, or leave it blank and press Enter to remove the link entirely.

You can also right-click the linked text and select "Remove link" from the menu. This keeps the text in your doc but deletes the clickable connection.

Sharing permissions and access

Before you send your doc to others, check that they can actually open the PDF. If the PDF is in your Google Drive and set to "Restricted," only people you have shared it with can view it. If you want anyone with the link to your doc to see the PDF, change the Drive file's sharing to "Anyone with the link" and set the permission to "Viewer."

If the PDF is on a public website, anyone can open it. If it is in a private cloud service like your company's OneDrive, only people with access to that service can open it. Test the link yourself by opening your doc in an incognito window or asking someone else to try clicking it — this shows you what the experience is like for someone who is not you.

Using the link tool in the toolbar

Instead of using the keyboard shortcut, you can click the link icon in Google Docs' toolbar. Highlight your text, click the link icon (it looks like a chain link), and paste your PDF URL into the box that appears. This method works the same way as the keyboard shortcut and is useful if you prefer using the mouse.

The toolbar link icon also lets you search for a link by typing keywords — for example, typing "annual report" will search your Google Drive for files with that name. You can select a file from the search results instead of pasting a URL manually.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I link to a PDF that is not on the internet?

No. The PDF must be hosted somewhere online — Google Drive, a website, Dropbox, or another cloud service. If you have a PDF only on your computer, upload it to Google Drive first, then copy the Drive link and paste it into your doc.

What happens if I delete the PDF after linking to it?

The link will break. Anyone who clicks it will see an error message saying the file is not found or they do not have permission. If you move or delete a PDF from Google Drive, update the link in your doc to point to the new location, or re-upload the PDF and create a new link.

Can I link to a PDF on someone else's Google Drive?

Yes, as long as they have shared the file with you or made it public. Right-click the file in their shared folder, select "Get link," and copy it. The link will work for anyone who has permission to view that file.

Does the person clicking the link need a Google account?

Not if the PDF is set to "Anyone with the link" in Google Drive. They can open it in any browser without signing in. If the PDF is restricted to specific people, they will need a Google account and must be on your sharing list.

Can I make the link open in a new tab instead of the same tab?

Google Docs does not have a built-in option for this. When someone clicks the link, it opens in the same tab. They can right-click the link and select "Open in new tab" manually if they prefer.