Looker Studio update recap: Key features from the past six months

Over the past six months, Google has rolled out a steady stream of enhancements to Looker Studio, continuing to evolve the platform into a more flexible, powerful, and user-friendly analytics tool. Below, review summaries of the most impactful changes that University of Minnesota marketers and analysts will find useful for their data journey.

Improved hide/remove data source fields

Remove any field from a data source—not just calculated ones. Removing or hiding a field also prevents viewers from accessing its metadata, such as field name or connector type. These improvements support stronger data governance while maintaining report flexibility.

Learn more about Looker Studio governance.

Dimensions in scorecard charts

Configure scorecard charts to display either a dimension or a metric as the primary field. If users select a dimension, they can also specify a different field for sorting, giving more control over how key metrics or categories are highlighted.

External link warnings

Looker Studio now displays a redirect notice when users click external links, improving transparency and helping avoid surprise redirects.

Pivot and table chart upgrades

• Pivot tables can be sorted by any metric or calculated field.
• Table charts support multi-column sorting using shift+click—giving users more power to explore data on their own terms.

Data preview in the data source editor

One long-requested feature has arrived: users can preview data directly in the data source editor, making it easier to verify field values and data types before adding them to a report.

Modern charts are the default

The long-anticipated modern charts are generally available and automatically applied to all new Looker Studio reports. These upgraded visuals offer fresh styling, expanded chart configuration options, more control over axis customization, and updated theme colors. If users are still using older reports, they need to manually upgrade them  to take advantage of these improvements. The classic themes remain available in the “themes” panel for continuity.

Responsive report layouts

Looker Studio now supports responsive layouts, enabling reports to scale across screen sizes which is ideal if a user’s audience frequently views dashboards on tablets or mobile devices. The default freeform layout is still optimized for desktop and it’s still the University Marketing Communications Measurement and Analytics (M&A) team’s preferred choice for dashboarding, but the new responsive layouts could be useful for users on the go.

Query result variables for dynamic text

A new feature, query result variables, allows users to pull data from a table cell and insert it directly into a text element. This is particularly useful for creating dynamic summaries, callouts, or contextual insights that update automatically with a user’s data.

New gridlines options for cartesian charts

New grid line options let a user set colors and line styles for individual axis grid lines, which makes it easier to distinguish between left or right y-axis grid lines.

The new grid line options are available only for cartesian charts in reports that have modern charts enabled.
Whether a user is a casual report viewer or a power user building complex dashboards, these updates continue to make Looker Studio a more capable and accessible platform. 

Have questions or ideas? Reach out to the M&A team or join their Community of Practice to share your thoughts.