How to Add Image in Looker Dashboard

Adding images to your Looker Studio (formerly Google Data Studio) dashboard is a simple way to make it more engaging, on-brand, and easier to understand. A well-placed logo or screenshot can transform a wall of charts into a professional, polished report. This guide will walk you through exactly how to add images, customize them, and use them creatively to improve your dashboards.

Why Add Images to Your Looker Studio Dashboard?

Before we jump into the "how," let's quickly cover the "why." You're not just decorating, you're improving the report’s overall function and user experience. A strategically placed image adds tremendous value.

• Improve Branding and Professionalism: Placing your company or client's logo in the header instantly legitimizes the report. It’s a small touch that shows attention to detail and reinforces brand identity, making your work feel more authoritative and polished.
• Provide Visual Context: Numbers and charts are fantastic, but they don't always tell the whole story. Imagine a report on ad campaign performance. Placing a small screenshot of the actual ad creative next to its metrics (CTR, conversions, spend) gives stakeholders immediate context. They can see what performed well, not just that something did.
• Create Better Navigation: Images can function as intuitive buttons. You can use icons to create a visual navigation menu, guiding users to different pages or external resources. A simple 'Help' icon could link to a document explaining the dashboard's metrics.
• Increase User Engagement: Let’s be honest, data-heavy reports can be intimidating. Breaking up grids of numbers with visuals makes the dashboard more approachable and less overwhelming, encouraging stakeholders to actually spend time with the data.

The Two Core Methods for Adding Images

Looker Studio gives you two straightforward ways to get images onto your dashboard canvas:

1. Add Image by URL: This method uses a direct link to an image that’s already hosted somewhere on the web.
2. Upload from Computer: This allows you to upload an image file directly from your machine.

Each method is useful in different scenarios, and we will walk through both step-by-step.

Method 1: How to Add an Image by URL

This is the best option when you're using an image that is already on your website or a public image hosting service. For example, if you want to add your company logo from your website’s homepage.

Step 1: Find and Copy the Image URL

First, you need a direct link to the image file itself. It’s crucial that this link points to the image, not the webpage it's on. The URL should end with a file extension like .png, .jpg, .gif, or .svg.

To get the correct URL:

• Navigate to the webpage where the image is hosted.
• Right-click on the image.
• Select "Copy Image Address" (the wording might vary slightly depending on your browser, e.g., "Copy Image Link").

If you don't have the image online, you can use a free image hosting service like Imgur to upload your image and get a direct link.

Step 2: Enter 'Edit' Mode in Looker Studio

Open the dashboard you want to add the image to. Make sure you are in "Edit" mode by clicking the Edit button in the top right corner.

Step 3: Access the Image Tool from the Toolbar

In the main toolbar at the top of the interface, you'll find the image icon. It looks like a small rectangle with mountains inside. Click it.

A dropdown will appear, giving you the two options: "Upload from computer" or "By URL."

Alternatively, you can go to the main menu and select Insert > Image and pick your option there.

Step 4: Paste Your URL

Select "By URL." A text box will appear. Simply paste the image address you copied in step 1 into this box and click the Insert button. The image will appear on your dashboard canvas, ready for you to position.

Method 2: How to Upload an Image from Your Computer

This method is more direct if you have the image file — like a transparent PNG of a logo or a screenshot — saved on your computer.

Step 1: Open Your Looker Studio Report in Edit Mode

As before, open your report and make sure you're in "Edit" mode.

Step 2: Access the Image Tool

Click the same image icon in the top toolbar we used in the first method.

Step 3: Select 'Upload from computer'

This time, choose "Upload from computer." Your computer's file explorer (Finder on Mac, File Explorer on Windows) will open. Navigate to the folder where your image is saved, select the file, and click "Open."

Looker Studio will upload the file and place the image directly onto your dashboard canvas.

Step 4: Position and Resize Your Image

With either method, the image will likely appear in the middle of your screen. You can now:

• Click and drag the image to position it exactly where you want it, for example, in the header or sidebar.
• Use the blue corner handles to resize the image. Hold the Shift key while dragging a corner to maintain the original aspect ratio and prevent distortion.

Customizing Your Image: The Style Panel

Just adding the image is only the first step. Looker Studio gives you a handful of styling options to make sure it fits perfectly with your dashboard's design.

When you have an image selected, the Image Properties panel will appear on the right side of your screen. If you don't see it, right-click the image and select "Report settings Panel."

Let's look at the "Style" tab in this panel:

• Link: In the 'Setup' tab, you can add a hyperlink to your image. This is perfect for making your logo clickable, redirecting users to your website homepage when they click it.
• Background and Border: In the 'Style' tab, you can add a border color, adjust the border thickness, or even choose a border style (solid, dashed, dotted). You can also add a background color, though this is less useful for images unless they have transparent areas.
• Border Radius: Want your rectangular image to have soft, rounded corners? Use the border radius setting. Increasing the pixel value will make the corners more curved.
• Opacity: This slider controls how transparent the image is. You can lower the opacity to create a watermark effect or help the image blend more subtly into your dashboard's background.

Creative Ways to Use Images in Your Dashboards

Now that you know the mechanics, here are some practical ideas to take your dashboards to the next level.

Your Company Logo

This is the most obvious but essential use. Place your logo (and your client's logo, if applicable) in the header of every page for a consistent, professional look. Use a transparent PNG file for the cleanest appearance.

Social Media and Site Icons

Add small, universally recognized icons that link to important resources. You could include icons for social media profiles (Facebook, X, LinkedIn) that link directly to those pages. Or, add a website icon that links back to your main website.

Visualizing Ad Creative

For marketing dashboards, this provides invaluable context. Create a table that shows your top-performing ads. Add a column for the ad name, CTR, cost, and conversions. Then, next to it, add a small screenshot of the corresponding ad creative. Stakeholders can now immediately see which images or copy are resonating with the audience.

Clickable Buttons for Calls-to-Action

You can design simple button graphics in a tool like Canva or Figma. For example, create an image that looks like a button that says "Download PDF" or "Go to Deep-Dive Analysis." Upload it to your dashboard and use the link feature to have it trigger an action, like linking to a printable version of the report.

Product Photos for E-commerce Analytics

If you have a sales dashboard for an e-commerce store (e.g., using Shopify or GA4 data), show a small image of the product next to its sales data. This makes it much easier to identify best-sellers at a glance without having to read through a list of product names.

Common Problems (And How to Fix Them)

Sometimes things don't go as planned. Here are a few common issues and their solutions.

"My image isn't showing up (the URL method)."

You'll typically see a broken image icon. This almost always happens for one of two reasons:

1. The URL isn't a direct link: Double-check that your URL ends in a common image file format. If it ends in .html or something similar, you copied the link to the webpage, not the image address. Go back and right-click the image to copy the correct link.
2. The image isn't public: If the image is hosted on a private server or behind a login (like a photo on a password-protected site), Looker Studio can't access it. Use a public hosting solution or your company's public website.

"The image looks blurry or pixelated."

This means your source image file is too small for the size you've stretched it to. There's no way to fix this in Looker Studio, you need to start with a higher-resolution image file. If the image is a logo, try to get an SVG or a high-quality PNG file.

"My logo has a white box around it."

This happens when you use a JPG file for a logo on a colored background. JPGs don't support transparency. To fix this, use a PNG file with a transparent background. This will let your dashboard's background color show through, giving the logo a clean, "floating" look.

"I can't click or select my image."

Other elements on your dashboard (like shapes or charts) might be layered on top of your image. Right-click the image and select "Order > Bring to front." This will move it to the top layer, making it selectable again.

Final Thoughts

You now have everything you need to start enhancing your Looker Studio reports with images. By moving beyond just adding a logo and starting to incorporate visual context for products, ads, and navigation, you can create dashboards that aren't just informative, but are genuinely user-friendly and deliver insights more effectively.

Manually designing highly customized dashboards in platforms like Looker Studio can still be a significant investment of time, especially when you're busy with the strategy itself. That’s why we created Graphed. We enable you to connect your marketing and sales data sources in just a few clicks and build entire dashboards simply by describing what you need in plain English. Instead of spending hours customizing visuals and wrangling data, you can build a real-time, interactive dashboard in seconds and get back to making decisions.