How to Create a Timeline in Google Docs and Google Sheets + Free Templates (2023)

These step-by-step timelines for Google Docs and Google Sheets tutorials explain how to create professional-looking timelines from your Google Doc and Google Sheet.

Professionals who need to present project plans and schedules visually can create a Basic manuallytimelinedirectly in Google Docs or Google Sheets. The resulting image might be fine for simple projects with little data, but the process is tedious and time-consuming - you have to manually add each element to the graphic. Also, the timeline may lack the flexibility and accuracy needed for project reports or client reviews, making it unsuitable for complex projects.

Those who want to view more details or update their timeline regularly should try a dedicated tool like Office Timeline Online instead. This is a free webTimeline Creatorthat automates the entire process and lets youDownload the resulting graphic as a native PowerPoint slide. It's a fast and easy-to-use tool that creates professional, clear, and presentation-ready graphics that can be updated as often as needed.

Below we will explainhow to create a timelineboth manually in Google Docs and Google Sheets and automatically with Office Timeline Online.

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Manually create a timeline in Google Docs and Google Sheets

How to create a timeline in Google Docs

This step-by-step guide explains how to create a Google Docs timeline manually and consists of the following main steps:

1.Create a new document in Google Docs.

1. Go to docs.google.com > +Space. Click onUnbenanntes Dokumentand name the document for easy reference later. (You can also name it later.)

   

2. Now it's time to change the default page orientation from portrait to landscapeFile > Page Setup, so you have more space for your timeline.

   

2. Create a timeline base from the drawing.

1. Go toInsert > Drawing > + New.

2. Click onLine > Arrowand draw a straight arrow using the grid lines as a reference. You can now format the arrow - choose your desired weight, stroke type, start and end points:

   

   (Video) New Google Sheets Timeline Feature

3. Add events, dates or tasks to your timeline.

1. Click onT (Text Box Tool)and click above or below the horizontal line.

2. Enter an event, task, or date. Resize or position the text box as needed by dragging the corners or sides.

   

3. Then copy and paste the text box and duplicate it as many times as you like so all your tasks and appointments are covered. You can do this later, after formatting and coloring the contents of your text box, in case you want more timeline elements to look the same.

4. Format and style.

1. You can color and format your timeline elements as you like. To apply the same changes to multiple items at once, simply hold down the CTRL key while clicking the items you want one at a time. We used thoseTo markcolor &text colorOptions to change font color for some of our milestones.

   

   Now your timeline should look something like this:

   

2. At this point, you need to connect the task titles and their corresponding dates with vertical lines. Go toLine Tool > Line, then under each task, draw a vertical line until it connects to the horizontal arrow at the bottom of your document. The line will automatically adjust to connect the two elements. So if you want straight, perpendicular lines, you'll need to realign each element as needed. Repeat for all items.

   After completing all of the above steps, your final Google Docs timeline should look like this:

   

How to create a timeline in Google Sheets

1. List your project milestones and dates in a spreadsheet.

1. Start a new Google Sheets spreadsheet by clickingFileType from template gallery.

   

2. Enter the most important milestones or events of your project in one of the columns as seen in the image below. Keep milestone descriptions as short as possible to ensure they are fully visible on the timeline.

3. In the next column, add the due date for each of your milestones.

4. To create a timeline in Google Sheets, your spreadsheet must also contain a third column of plot numbers. So add this next to your milestone dates and enter a sequence of numbers like 1, 2, 3, 4 as in the example below. These plot points are used to define the vertical placement of each milestone on your timeline graph.

   
   

2. Create a simple timeline by setting it up as a bubble chart.

1. Select all the data in your spreadsheet and go toInsert → Chartin the Google Sheets ribbon.

   

2. Within theChart Editorarea on the right, go tochart typesection and click the down arrow next tobar chart.

   

   (Video) Project management timeline template for Google Sheets (Gantt Chart)

3. Now select from the Chart Type menububble chartoption under thesprinklecategory, and Google Sheets will automatically generate a simple timeline from your selected dates.

   

   note: Don't worry if you notice that some of your milestones are outside the chart area. We will fix this in the following steps so that all your timeline elements are fully visible.

3.Format your graphic to ensure readability.

1. First, if your graphic looks too crowded or some of your milestone titles are overlapping, resizing can provide a better fit. Simply click on the chart area to select it and drag its handles to achieve the desired height and width.

   

2. Now it's time to adjust the vertical axis so that the top milestones are fully visible. To do this, first go to theTo adjustChart editor tab (see image below). You can open thoseDiagrammeditorat any time by double-clicking on your visual.
   

3. Click here on thevertical axissection to open it.
   

4. Enter "0" in the text box belowMinimum.In themmaxfield, you must add a value that is greater than the largest plot number you entered in your data table. In our case themaxValue will be "5".

   

5. In our example, we also wanted to remove all of the horizontal grid lines that cut through the artwork, as they seem to unnecessarily clutter up the timeline. If you want to do the same, open thegrid linessection about theChart Editorand set theNumber of major grid linesto 1 for thevertical axis.

   

6. While you're still in thegrid linessection, you can add more vertical grid lines to better see the relative distance between milestones. Click the down arrow next tovertical axisand selecthorizontal axisfrom the small drop down menu that appears. Here we set the value for the "2".Small grid line count.

   

   After completing all of the above steps, your graph should look like this:

   

4. Adjust your timeline.

Now that your timeline is properly formatted, you can apply some styling options to personalize it. ThatTo adjusttab in theChart Editoryou can easily set a different color for your milestones, text or dates, change sizes and fonts, add a chart title and much more. However, the trickier part comes if you wantrecolor individual milestone markers(bubbles) to distinguish them or show their status, as Google Sheets will apply your formatting options to the entire series by default. But don't worry - we'll show you below how you can do the same.

1. In order for Google to see your milestones as individual items, you need to go back to your data table and4 create^thpillarthat will separate them into categories. In this new column, enter a value or category name for each milestone. In our example, we differentiate the milestones by status as seen in the image below.

   

   note: If you want some of your milestones to be the same color, assign them the exact same value or category name.

2. After you've filled out your milestone categories, here's what you need to do to apply them to your timeline:

   I.Go toconfigurationtab in theChart Editor.

   (Video) Making Timelines in Google Sheets

   ii.Click on thatAdd seriesfield and then on the small table icon on the right below it.

   iii.Click in theSelect a data rangeText box and then select the entire category column from your spreadsheet. ThatSelect a data rangeThe field is automatically filled in with the cell range of the column.

   iv.click OK.

   

   Google Sheets automatically applies a different default color to each of your milestone categories and also adds a legend as seen in the image below:

   

3. If you want to change the default colors:

   I.Navigate toTo adjusttab ofDiagrammeditor.

   ii.In themSeriesection, open the series selector and select the milestone category you want to recolor.

   iii.Undercolour, choose a new shade for your milestone.

   

4. Below we suggest some other customizations that you can apply if you wish:

   I. Add a title to your timeline. To do this, double-click on the timeline, clickTo adjustinDiagrammeditorand then furtherChart and axis titles. Here you can select the items you want to change (chart title, chart subtitle, etc.). Put your title in thattitle textfield and set the preferred size, color, font for the entered text and its position.

   ii.MoveLegendto the right so the title area doesn't look crowded. Go toChart Editor > Customize > Legendand changePositionattitude toRight.

   

   After trying several colors, adding a title, and adjusting the font size, our final Google Sheets timeline looks like this:

   

How to create a timeline automatically online

Manually creating a timeline using Google Docs or Google Sheets can be time-consuming, and the result may lack the clarity and accuracy clients and executives expect. An online timeline generator such asOffice timeline onlinemay be a more appropriate alternative for creating professional-looking visuals required for business or project presentations.

In the following we will show you how to automatically create a timeline in Office Timeline Online and how to adjust or update it with just a few clicks. Start,Open the free tool in your browserand follow the steps below.

1.Enter your timeline data into Office Timeline Online.

1. Von Office Timeline OnlineNeutab, clickTimeline from scratch("+") or select one of the different templates availableStart creating your graphic. If you normally manage your data in Excel, you can also import an existing .xls schedule into the web tool and turn it into a timeline. However, for this demonstration, we will create our visual from scratch.

   

   (Video) Historical timeline template - Google docs -How to?

   After you choose the type of timeline you want to create, Office Timeline Online opens thedata viewTab where you can insert and edit data.

2. In themdata view, list the key milestones of your project and their due dates. You can also make some quick adjustments here, e.g. B. Choose the color and shape for each milestone marker. As you add or edit items, the web tool updates your image in real time and shows you a live preview to the right of your data list. When you're done, click or select the previewtimelineTab above the data list to get to theTimeline view, where you can design every detail of your graphic.

   

2. Easily customize and update your timeline.

1. Once you've created your image, Office Timeline Online makes it easy to personalize and update it. For example theTimeline viewallows you to instantly change colors, shapes, positions, fonts, and date formats, add extra details like elapsed time, or hide elements your audience doesn't need to see. If you look at our final timeline below, you'll see that we used multiple milestone shapes and sizes, used customized text to draw attention to important checkpoints, and added a today marker to provide a clearer overview get where the project stands.

   

2. if you have onefree account, the web app securely stores your timeline in the cloud so you can access it at any time and quickly update it as plans change. Drag and drop milestonesTimeline viewto instantly adjust their due dates, or use theDataTab to quickly add, edit or remove items. When you're done, load your timeline as Imagine or asnative .pptx-Foliethat anyone with PowerPoint can view, update, or present.

Frequently asked questions about timelines in Google Docs and Google Sheets

See how easy it is to create timelines with Office Timeline Online