Sheets Chart Changed but Slides Did Not? Check the Link and Update the Right Object
By ON Lab · Sources checked November 6, 2026
A chart copied from Sheets into Slides can be linked without updating instantly whenever the sheet changes. Verify the chart's actual source, then use its Update control. For several linked objects, use Tools → Linked objects. A pasted image or unlinked chart cannot receive the same source updates.
Separate source data, source chart and destination chart
A Slides Community reader had a Sheets chart that reflected new data while its linked copy in Slides remained unchanged. The source chart and its destination copy are different checkpoints. Refreshing the data behind a source chart is not the same as updating a linked object in a presentation.
Start with one affected chart. Keep a copy of an important deck before updating several objects, especially if you adjusted their appearance in Slides. Google's documentation warns that source-object edits can override changes made in the destination when linked objects are updated.
1. Confirm that the slide object is linked
- Open the presentation on a computer.
- Select the affected chart.
- Look for its link controls and use Link options → Open source when available.
- Confirm that the source is the intended spreadsheet and chart.
- Read a known data point, chart title and relevant category labels in the source.
If there is no Update control, Google lists two possible explanations: the object may not be linked, or it may already be up to date. An absent button alone does not establish which explanation applies.
A screenshot of a chart is an ordinary image, not a live link. Likewise, choosing Paste unlinked or clearing Link to spreadsheet when importing prevents the source-update relationship. Do not repeatedly refresh the browser expecting an unlinked image to acquire one.
2. Check the source chart before updating Slides
Confirm that the chart in Sheets already displays the values and period you want. If its source range or formula output is wrong, updating the destination can only bring across the wrong source result. Identify that source issue first instead of making unrelated formatting changes in Slides.
If the source chart is correct, return to the selected linked chart in Slides. At its top-right corner, choose Update when offered. Then compare the same known value, categories, legend and time period with the source.
This guide does not diagnose the reader's particular FILTER formula or guarantee a fix for a product defect. The controlled question is whether the source chart is correct and whether the linked copy reflects it after the documented update operation.
3. Update several linked objects deliberately
- In Slides, open Tools → Linked objects.
- Read the objects listed in the sidebar.
- Use Update next to a specific object when you want to verify one at a time.
- Use Update all only when updating the listed objects together is intended.
- Inspect each affected slide afterward.
Do not certify an entire deck because one chart changed. Several charts can use different sheets, ranges or source files. A complete update check needs to account for every object required by the presentation.
4. Recreate the link only when the object is actually unlinked
Google's documented import route is Insert → Chart → From Sheets. Select the intended spreadsheet, choose the intended chart, keep Link to spreadsheet selected, and import it.
For a presentation with a deliberately unlinked image, import a linked chart into a working copy and compare it before deleting the original slide object. Replacing an object can change its size, placement or appearance. Do not discard the only good layout just to test whether a link works.
If the source cannot be opened because you lack access, ask the permitted source owner for help. Do not change sharing settings or copy another person's source data to work around permissions without authorization.
5. Inspect formatting and data visibility
After updating, check font sizes, label clipping, legends, colors, plot area and the chart's placement on the slide. Google's source-to-destination override warning matters if the destination had local formatting edits. A numerically updated chart can still be visually unusable.
Also review what the audience can see. Google states that people with access to the destination document or presentation can view its linked charts, tables or slides even if they cannot access the source file. A private spreadsheet therefore does not make a chart already displayed in a shared deck private.
Edits to a linked object in the destination are not copied back to the source. If you intend to change the underlying data or original chart, use Open source and work in the appropriate original file with permission.
6. Save, reopen and check the deliverable
Wait for the presentation to finish saving, reopen it, and inspect the affected slides. Compare the known values and visible labels again. If you export a PDF or PowerPoint file, inspect that actual output separately rather than assuming it stays linked or updates later in the same way.
If the source is correct but the linked object remains wrong after the documented update, preserve the copy and record the source identity, object type, update control state and a non-sensitive example. Stop making broad changes to every chart while asking for support.
Completion means that the intended linked objects display the checked source values with readable formatting in the saved presentation and required export. This guide does not provide an automatic refresh script, access a private spreadsheet, or reproduce the reader's specific failure.