How to Create a Gantt Chart in Google Docs (With Templates!)

Build a basic Gantt chart in Google Docs with this easy-to-follow tutorial. We’ll cover every step of the Gantt chart creation and add new skills to your Google project management knowledge.👩‍💻

By the end of this article, you’ll learn:

How to insert a Gantt Chart from an existing Google spreadsheet
How to create a Gantt Chart with a stacked bar chart
A better way to make a Gantt Chart (hint: it’s not in Google Docs!)

How To Create a Basic Google Docs Gantt Chart

⭐ Featured Template

Why waste time on charts that go outdated fast? Try free ClickUp’s Simple Gantt Chart Template—easy, flexible, and always up to date! 🚀

ClickUp Simple Gantt Chart Template — Clickup’s Simple Gantt Chart Template provides a comprehensive project overview, allowing visualization of dependencies and identifying potential blockers before they occur.

If you need to create a Gantt chart from scratch in Google Docs, jump to the Version 2 tutorial.

📄 Method 1: Inserting from an existing Google Sheets Gantt chart

Open a new Doc from your Google Drive
Click Insert > Chart > From Sheets

Choose your Spreadsheet >click Select to apply
Select the image again and at the bottom left corner, click the ellipses icon > All image options from the drop down menu

Bonus: Learn how to create a project timeline in Google Docs!

format a google docs gantt chart — Created in Google Docs

Use these tools to customize your chart:
- Size & Rotation
- Text Wrapping
- Position
- Recolor
- Transparency, Brightness, and Contrast under Adjustments

Check out our guide on Gantt charts in Excel!

customize a google docs gantt chart — Created in Google Docs

Bonus: Mind Mapping in Google Docs!

🛠 Method 2: Using the Stacked Bar Chart in Google Docs

Open a new Doc from your Google Drive
Select Insert > Chart > Bar from the chart types
On the bottom corner, select Edit in Sheets from the pop-up or Open Source on the top right-hand corner of the image

edit a google sheets gantt chart — Created in Google Docs

In Google Sheets, click on the ellipses icon at the top right corner of the chart > Edit chart
From the Setup tab, change None to Standard under Stacking (this will automatically change the Chart type to Stacked bar chart)

customizing the chart editor tab in google sheets — Created in Google Sheets

Under Stacked bar chart, select this chart type ⬇️

choose the stacked bar chart in google sheets — Created in Google Sheets

Input all data in Google Sheets columns
- Column A: list each task name
- Columns B and C: add each task’s start date and end date

editing a bar graph in google sheets — Created in Google Sheets

Remove the Start Date by highlighting the light blue bars, and under Series, change the Fill opacity from 100% to 0%

format the progress bar colors in the google docs gantt chart — Created in Google Sheets

Under the Customize tab:
- Select Chart style > adjust the Background color, Font, and Chart border color to a darker color
- Select Chart & axis titles and edit the chart name
- Select Horizontal axis and check the Show axis line box

format a gantt chart in the customize column — Created in Google Sheets

Once complete, go back to your Google Doc and click UPDATE on the image to carry over all the edits you made in Google Sheets
Select the image again and at the bottom left corner, click the ellipses icon > All image options. Use these tools to customize your chart:
- Size & Rotation
- Text Wrapping
- Position
- Recolor
- Transparency, Brightness, and Contrast under Adjustments

Tip: If you need to place text above the Bar chart, place the cursor to the right of the image, press the left arrow on your keyboard to move it to the left of the image, and press the enter key three times. ⬇️

add text above a gantt chart in google docs — Created in Google Docs

Also learn how to create a flowchart in Google Docs.

How to Save Your Basic Gantt Chart as a Template in Docs

You’ve done all this work to create a Google Docs Gantt chart. Save it as a template to cut your preparation time in half for the next project! Here’s how to save a Gantt chart template in Docs:

1. Add the word Template to the Doc’s title

save a google docs gantt chart template — Created in Google Docs

2. Click the folder icon next to the Doc’s title > New Folder icon

create a folder for project management templates in google docs — Created in Google Docs

3. Name the folder and click the checkmark to save

save a project template folder in google docs — Created in Google Docs

4. Select Move Here to save the template into the folder you created

save a gantt chart template to a google docs folder — Created in Google Docs

Bonus: Learn how to make a Gantt chart in Microsoft Word!

Now you can access and add your custom templates from your Google Drive! 🎉

There’s a Better (and Faster) Way to Create a Free Gantt Chart

While it’s handy to know how to create Gantt charts in a popular tool like Google Docs or any project management software, that was a ton of work for a chart that will be unusable the next day… maybe even in the next hour or two.

As we all know (and experience), projects change daily. So while you’re busy manually creating a Gantt chart in Google Docs, the data, people, and circumstances might change, and you’ll have to start over.

This inevitable situation is why it’s essential to use an intuitive software tool like ClickUp to remove the manual work and update in real-time.

ClickUp is the ultimate productivity platform allowing teams to manage projects, collaborate smarter, and bring all work under one tool. Whether you’re new to productivity apps or a seasoned project manager, ClickUp’s customization can stretch to any team size for consistent collaboration.

clickup free gantt chart — Visualize your project plans with ClickUp Gantt charts

ClickUp’s Gantt chart view couldn’t be any easier to create and monitor.

Click + View in your desired Space, Folder, or List
Select Gantt
Enter a name for this view
Click Add View

how to add a clickup gantt view — Add a ClickUp Gantt view and check the Personal view and Pin view boxes for extra settings

What Google Docs can’t do that the ClickUp’s Gantt chart feature exceeds at is setting and managing dependent tasks in your project timeline:

Learn more about ClickUp’s Dependencies!

Quickly determine how much time is required to complete a task by hovering over the progress bars
View the critical path (chain of tasks crucial to a project’s completion)
Manage project tasks in singles or groups