This page tells you how to add a link on your Confluence page using the Rich Text Editor. A link, or hyperlink, is a word or phrase which, when clicked, will direct the user to another web page or other location. You can link to Confluence pages, user profiles, other web pages, images and other attachments.
Quick guide to adding links
- Click the link icon
on the editor toolbar. Select one of these options:
- 'Search' – Find and link to a page or file in Confluence.
- 'Recently Viewed' – Find and link to a page in Confluence that you have visited recently.
- 'Attachments' – Link to an image or file attached to the current Confluence page.
- 'Web Link' – Enter a URL and link to an external web page or file.
The rest of this page gives more details of the above procedure and additional options.
On this page:
Adding Links
You can add links to your Confluence page in the rich text editor via the link browser, pasting a link from your web browser, using autocomplete or drag and drop (Firefox and Safari Only).
Adding a Link via the Link Browser
The 'link browser' is the 'Insert Link' or 'Edit Link' window that pops up when you click the 'Insert Link' icon in the editor toolbar.
Wiki Markup Editor and Rich Text Editor
You can click the 'Insert Link' icon in either Wiki Markup mode or the Rich Text Editor. The functionality described below is the same for both editing modes.
To create a new link using the 'Insert Link' window,
- Place your cursor at the point where you want to insert the link, or highlight the text that you want linked.
- Click the 'Insert\Edit Link' icon in the toolbar. The 'Insert Link' window will open, showing the 'Search' option.
Alternatively, if you are in the Rich Text Editor, you can open this window by:
- Clicking the 'Insert' menu and choosing the 'Link' item from the drop-down menu.
- Right-clicking in the editor window and choosing the 'Insert/Edit Link' item from the context menu (if the right-click context menu is enabled).
- Pressing Ctrl-K if you use Internet Explorer for Windows. See keyboard shortcuts for key combinations used on other browsers and operating systems.
- Choose one of the options in the left-hand panel to help you find the page or other location that you want to link to:
- Search – Use this option to link to a page or file in Confluence.
- Start typing the user, page, image or file name into the text box. Confluence will suggest options as you type, using autocomplete to guess what you want. See the screenshot below.
- If necessary, limit the search by selecting a space.
- Select your link destination from the autocomplete results, or click 'Search' and select the link destination from the search results.
- Recently Viewed – Use this option to link to a page in Confluence. Select your link destination from recently-visited pages.
- Attachments – Use this option to link to an image or other file that is attached to the current page. You can also browse for a file or image and attach it to the page, then select it to create the link. If you like, you can refer to the detailed instructions with screenshot.
- Web Link – Use this option to link to an external web page or file. Enter or paste the web address into the 'URL' text box. An example of a URL is: 'http://www.google.com'.
- Search – Use this option to link to a page or file in Confluence.
- If you want your link to display specific words on the page, enter the words in the 'Link Text' text box. If you highlighted some text before clicking the 'Insert Link' icon, that text will appear here by default. If you leave the 'Link Text' text box empty, the link will display the destination page name or URL.
- Click 'Insert'.
Screenshot: The link browser, showing autocomplete in the 'Search' option
Link browser will remove tooltips
In Confluence 3.2 and later, the link browser no longer offers the option to include a tooltip for your link. If you have existing links with tooltips, the tooltip will disappear if you edit the link with the link browser. The tooltip will remain if you edit the link using wiki markup. See issue CONF-18668.
Linking from one Confluence Page to another Confluence Page
Follow the instructions above, selecting one of these options:
- 'Search'
- 'Recently Viewed'
Linking to an Image
Follow the instructions above, selecting one of these options:
- 'Search' – Search for and link to any image attached to any page in your Confluence site.
- 'Attachments' – Link to an image attached to the current Confluence page.
If you like, you can refer to the detailed instructions with screenshot.
Linking to an Attachment
Follow the instructions above, selecting one of these options:
- 'Search' – Search for and link to any image or file attached to any page in your Confluence site.
- 'Attachments' – Link to an image or file attached to the current Confluence page.
If you like, you can refer to the detailed instructions with screenshot.
Linking to a Page Outside Confluence
Follow the instructions above, select the 'Web Link' option and enter the URL of the web page.
Linking to a Non-Existent Confluence Page
You may want to insert a link pointing to a Confluence page that does not yet exist.
To link to a non-existent page via the link browser, follow the instructions above and select the 'Web Link' option. Enter the name of the non-existent page into the URL text box.
Screenshot: Linking to a non-existent Confluence page via the link browser
Linking via a Shortcut Link
If you have configured shortcut links on your Confluence site, then you can link to an external site using a shortcut link that looks like this: CONF-17025@jira. Our Confluence site (where this documentation is housed) is configured to allow shortcut links to our JIRA site, using the shortcut @jira. So the shortcut link CONF-17025@jira produces this link.
To add a shortcut link via the link browser, follow the instructions above and select the 'Web Link' option. Enter your shortcut link into the URL text box.
Screenshot: Entering a shortcut link into the link browser
Pasting a Link from your Web Browser
To paste a link from your web browser,
- In your web browser, select the link text on the page.
- Copy the selection to your clipboard (Ctrl-C or Edit > Copy in Windows).
- Paste the selection into the Rich Text Editor (Ctrl-V or Edit > Paste in Windows).
The link's original presentation will be replicated as closely as possible. The link's name, the actual URL and some text formatting will be retained. - When you save the page, the link will be live.
Adding a Link via Autocomplete
Quick summary: Use '[' or Ctrl+Shift+K to see a list of suggested links.
For the details, see the page about autocomplete in the Rich Text Editor.
Adding a Link via Drag and Drop (Firefox and Safari Only)
Note: This is a browser-specific feature available in Firefox and Safari browsers only and is not part of Confluence's drag and drop feature.
Supported Web Browsers
Please ensure that you are using one of the web browsers supported by Confluence. If you are using an unsupported browser or browser version, some features may not work correctly. You can find the list of supported web browsers and browser versions on this page: Supported Platforms.
To create a link using your browser's drag and drop capabilities,
- Simply drag the hyperlink from another web page into the Rich Text Editor window. A link to that URL with the wording used on that web page will be added to your page content at the place where you release the mouse button.
Editing a Link
You can edit an existing link in the rich text editor using a keyboard shortcut, link properties panel or right-click context menu (if enabled).
To edit an existing link in the rich text editor,
- Locate the link that you want to edit in the rich text editor.
- Edit the link using one of the methods below:
- Highlight the link and pressing Ctrl-K if you use Internet Explorer for Windows. See keyboard shortcuts for key combinations used on other browsers and operating systems. The link browser will display for you to update the link.
- Right-clicking the link in the rich text editor and choosing the 'Insert/Edit Link' item from the context menu (if the right-click context menu is enabled). The link browser will display for you to update the link.
If not already activated, you can activate the right-click context menu by clicking the 'Context Menu' icon 
in the toolbar. - Move the cursor onto the link. A link properties panel will appear (see screenshot below). Click 'Edit'. The link browser will display for you to update the link.
Screenshot: Links Property Panel
Removing a Link
You can easily remove a link using the link properties panel or the right-click context menu (if enabled).
To remove a link in the rich text editor,
- Locate the link that you want to remove in the rich text editor.
- Remove the link using one of the methods below:
- Right-click the link you want to remove and choose 'Unlink' from the context menu.
If not already activated, you can activate the right-click context menu by clicking the 'Context Menu' icon in the toolbar. - Move the cursor onto the link. A link properties panel will appear (see screenshot below). Click 'Unlink'.
- Right-click the link you want to remove and choose 'Unlink' from the context menu.
Screenshot: Links Property Panel
RELATED TOPICS
Inserting Images in the Rich Text Editor
Linking to Attachments in the Rich Text Editor
Using Autocomplete in the Rich Text Editor
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