Google Sheets does not have a built-in Sankey diagram chart type. If you've been searching for a "Sankey" option in the Insert Chart menu, you won't find one — it simply doesn't exist. But you can still create professional Sankey diagrams from your Google Sheets data in under five minutes using a free external tool.
A Sankey diagram visualizes flows between stages or categories. The width of each band is proportional to the quantity it represents, making it immediately clear where the largest flows go and where drop-offs occur. They're used for budget allocation, website user flows, energy transfer analysis, customer journey mapping, and supply chain tracking.
This guide shows you exactly how to get your data out of Google Sheets and into a finished Sankey diagram — no coding, no plugins, no complex workarounds.
Why Google Sheets Can't Create Sankey Diagrams
Google Sheets supports about 20 chart types: bar, line, pie, scatter, area, combo, histogram, candlestick, treemap, and a few others. Sankey diagrams are not on that list. This is a deliberate product decision by Google — Sankey diagrams require a different data model (source → target → value triples) than the row/column structure that most spreadsheet charts use.
You have three workarounds:
- Google Charts API — Write JavaScript code using the Google Visualization API. This requires programming knowledge and a web page to host the chart. Not practical for most users.
- Google Sheets add-ons — Some third-party add-ons claim to add Sankey support, but they're often limited, require paid upgrades, or have privacy concerns since they access your spreadsheet data.
- Export to CSV and use a dedicated chart maker — The fastest and most reliable option. Export your data from Google Sheets, upload to a tool like CleanChart, and generate your Sankey diagram in seconds. Your data stays in your browser and is never uploaded to a server.
Option 3 is what we'll walk through below. It takes about 2 minutes once your data is ready.
How to Structure Your Data for a Sankey Diagram
Sankey diagrams need data in a specific format: three columns representing source, target, and value. Each row defines one flow between two nodes.
| Source | Target | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Website | Sign Up Page | 5000 |
| Website | Bounce | 3000 |
| Sign Up Page | Completed Registration | 2800 |
| Sign Up Page | Abandoned | 2200 |
| Completed Registration | First Purchase | 1200 |
| Completed Registration | No Purchase | 1600 |
Notice how stages chain together: "Website" flows into "Sign Up Page", which then flows into "Completed Registration" and "Abandoned". This creates a multi-level flow. You can have as many levels as your data requires.
Common data structures that convert well to Sankey format:
- Budget data: Department → Category → Subcategory with dollar amounts
- User flow data: Page → Next Page with session counts
- Supply chain: Supplier → Factory → Distributor → Retailer with unit volumes
- Energy data: Source → Conversion → End Use with energy units
- Survey responses: Question 1 Answer → Question 2 Answer with respondent counts
If your data is currently in a different format (like a pivot table or summary report), you'll need to restructure it into these three columns first. Our CSV data cleaning guide covers common restructuring techniques.
Step-by-Step: Google Sheets to Sankey Diagram
Step 1: Prepare your data in Google Sheets
Open your Google Sheets file and ensure your data follows the source-target-value format described above. Use clear, descriptive labels for your source and target columns — these become the node labels in your diagram.
Tips for clean data:
- Keep labels concise (under 25 characters) so they display well on the diagram
- Make sure source and target names are consistent — "Sign Up" and "Signup" will create two separate nodes
- Remove any blank rows or extra header rows
- Ensure the value column contains only numbers (no currency symbols or commas)
Step 2: Export as CSV
In Google Sheets, go to File → Download → Comma Separated Values (.csv). This downloads your active sheet as a CSV file to your computer. If you only need specific rows, select and copy them to a new sheet first, then export that sheet.
For a detailed walkthrough of exporting and charting from Google Sheets, see our Google Sheets to chart tutorial.
Step 3: Upload to CleanChart
Go to CleanChart and upload your CSV file. The tool detects your columns automatically.
Step 4: Select Sankey Diagram
Choose "Sankey Diagram" from the chart type selector. Map your source column, target column, and value column to the appropriate fields. The preview updates in real time as you configure the chart.
Step 5: Customize and export
Adjust colors, labels, and layout settings to match your needs. Once you're satisfied, export as PNG for presentations or SVG for publication-quality output. The entire process takes under 2 minutes.
You can also skip straight to the chart by using our Google Sheets to Sankey Diagram converter page, which walks you through the same process with Sankey-specific guidance.
When to Use a Sankey Diagram vs. Other Charts
Sankey diagrams are powerful but not always the right choice. Here's when to use them and when a different chart type works better:
| Use Sankey When | Use Instead | Better Chart Type |
|---|---|---|
| Showing flows between stages with volume | Showing drop-off rates at each stage | Funnel chart |
| Multiple branching paths (e.g., user journeys) | Single linear progression | Bar chart or waterfall chart |
| Budget or resource allocation across categories | Part-of-whole composition at one level | Treemap or donut chart |
| Energy or material flow through a system | Comparing total quantities across categories | Bar chart |
| 5–30 flows with clear source-target relationships | 50+ flows (becomes unreadable) | Aggregate into fewer categories first |
For a complete chart selection reference, see our chart types explained guide covering all 25+ chart types.
Real-World Sankey Diagram Examples
Example 1: Marketing campaign flow
A marketing team tracks how 10,000 ad impressions convert through the funnel: Ad Impression → Landing Page Visit (2,400) → Lead Form Started (800) → Lead Submitted (350) → Sales Call (180) → Closed Deal (45). At each stage, the remaining volume flows to "Lost". The Sankey diagram makes it instantly obvious that the biggest drop-off is from impression to landing page — suggesting the ad creative or targeting needs improvement, not the sales process.
Example 2: University budget allocation
A university CFO visualizes how a $50M budget flows from revenue sources (tuition, grants, endowment, state funding) through administrative divisions (academic affairs, student services, facilities, research) to specific expense categories (salaries, equipment, scholarships, maintenance). The width of each flow band immediately reveals that 68% of all revenue ends up in salaries, regardless of the original source — a finding that took hours to extract from spreadsheet tables but is visible at a glance in the Sankey diagram.
Example 3: Website user journey
A product manager maps how users navigate from the homepage through product pages, pricing, documentation, and sign-up. The Sankey reveals that most users who visit the pricing page go directly to sign-up (good), but most users who visit documentation first leave the site entirely (indicating the docs may be confusing new visitors). This kind of multi-path insight is exactly what Sankey diagrams excel at — and exactly what you can't see in a simple bar chart of page views.
For more on building narrative around visualizations like these, see our data storytelling guide.
Tips for Better Sankey Diagrams
- Limit to 5–7 source nodes and 5–7 target nodes per level. More than that and the diagram becomes a tangled mess. Aggregate small categories into an "Other" group.
- Order nodes logically. Place the largest flows at the top or center. If there's a natural sequence (like a process flow), respect that order.
- Use distinct colors for different source categories. This helps viewers trace flows through multiple levels. Avoid using the same color for unrelated nodes.
- Label the values. Include the actual numbers on each flow band so viewers can compare magnitudes precisely, not just visually.
- Keep labels short. Long node labels create layout issues. Use abbreviations or codes with a legend if needed.
For detailed Sankey diagram configuration options and advanced features, see our complete Sankey diagram creation guide.
Alternative Approaches for Google Sheets Users
If you prefer to stay within the Google ecosystem, here are two alternatives — though both have significant limitations compared to dedicated chart tools:
Google Charts API (requires coding): The Google Charts Sankey documentation provides a JavaScript API that can render Sankey diagrams in a web browser. You'll need to write HTML and JavaScript code, host it somewhere, and manually update the data arrays when your spreadsheet changes. This is only practical if you're comfortable with web development.
Google Sheets add-ons: Search the Google Workspace Marketplace for "Sankey" and you'll find a handful of add-ons. Be cautious — these extensions access your spreadsheet data and may send it to external servers. Read the privacy policy before installing. Most free add-ons also have severe limitations on the number of nodes or flows.
For most users, the export-to-CSV approach described in this guide is faster, more flexible, and more privacy-friendly than either alternative.
Related CleanChart Resources
- How to Create a Sankey Diagram — detailed configuration guide with advanced options
- Google Sheets to Chart Tutorial — general guide for creating any chart type from Google Sheets data
- Chart Types Explained — complete reference for selecting the right chart
- How to Create a Funnel Chart — alternative for single-path conversion flows
- Data Storytelling with Charts — how to build narrative around flow visualizations
- Sankey Diagram Maker — create Sankey diagrams directly from CSV data
- Funnel Chart Maker — for conversion and drop-off analysis
- Treemap Maker — for hierarchical part-to-whole composition
- Google Sheets to Sankey Diagram Converter
- CSV to Sankey Diagram Converter
External Resources
- Sankey Diagram — Wikipedia — history and theory of Sankey diagrams, including Captain Sankey's original 1898 steam engine efficiency diagram
- Google Charts Sankey Documentation — official API reference for developers who want to build Sankey diagrams programmatically
- Google Sheets Chart Types — official list of chart types available in Google Sheets (no Sankey)
- NerdSip — bite-sized data visualization lessons including flow diagram best practices
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I create a Sankey diagram directly in Google Sheets?
No. Google Sheets does not have a native Sankey diagram chart type. The Insert Chart menu does not include Sankey as an option. To create a Sankey diagram from Google Sheets data, export your data as CSV and use a dedicated chart maker like CleanChart, or write custom JavaScript using the Google Charts API.
What data format do I need for a Sankey diagram?
Sankey diagrams require three columns: source, target, and value. Each row represents one flow between two nodes. For example: "Marketing" (source) → "Website Traffic" (target) → 5000 (value). Nodes can chain together across multiple levels to show multi-stage flows.
How many flows can a Sankey diagram handle before it becomes unreadable?
Most Sankey diagrams work best with 10–30 individual flows and 5–15 unique nodes. Beyond 30 flows, the diagram becomes cluttered and hard to interpret. If you have more flows, aggregate small categories into an "Other" group or split the visualization into separate diagrams for each major source.
Is there a free Sankey diagram maker that works with Google Sheets data?
Yes. CleanChart is a free, browser-based chart maker that creates Sankey diagrams from CSV files exported from Google Sheets. Your data stays in your browser and is never uploaded to a server. Export your Google Sheets data as CSV, upload it to CleanChart, select Sankey Diagram, and your chart is ready in under 2 minutes.
Last updated: April 10, 2026