How to use the Drill Down feature in Looker Studio
Learn how to enable and use the Drill Down feature in Looker Studio to explore data interactively, from overview to detailed insights in one chart.
Exploring data shouldn’t require switching pages or multiplying charts. With the Drill Down feature in Looker Studio, users can dive deeper into their data directly within a visualization, from a broad overview to the smallest detail.
In this lesson, we’ll see how this feature works, how to enable it, and how marketers can use it to create more interactive and insightful dashboards.
What is drill down in Looker Studio
The drill feature, also known as hierarchical exploration, allows report users to explore data in greater depth directly within a chart.
When a user clicks on a chart element, they can change its level of granularity to view more detailed information about the selected subject.
Simple example:
- Level 1: Region
- Level 2: Country
- Level 3: City
By clicking on an element, the user can switch between these three levels, dynamically changing how the data is aggregated based on the chosen level.
This feature pairs especially well with cross filtering, as combining both provides users with a highly fluid and interactive experience when exploring reports.
Drill functionality is compatible with tables, bar charts, line charts, and pie charts.
How to enable Drill down option
To activate the drill feature:
- Select the relevant chart.
- In the right-hand panel, open the Setup tab.
- Under the Dimensions section, enable the Drill down option.
The selected dimensions will then define your drill hierarchy levels.
Marketing Use Cases
Geographic Performance Analysis
When users want to analyze performance from a geographic perspective, they can structure their traffic data using geographic dimensions available in their data connector:
- Level 1: Region
- Level 2: Country
- Level 3: City
This setup allows them to zoom into high-performing areas without multiplying the number of charts on the page.
Advertising Campaign Analysis
For users working with cross-platform campaign dashboards, adding drill levels like:
- Level 1: Platform
- Level 2: Campaign
- Level 3: Ad Group
is an excellent way to bring interactivity.
It allows them to quickly identify where performance originates or where costs are exceeding expectations.
Marketing Funnel Tracking
If users need to analyze performance throughout their marketing funnel, they can structure their data as:
- Level 1: Funnel stage
- Level 2: Acquisition channel
- Level 3: Specific campaign
This setup makes it easy to visualize how performance improves or declines at each stage of the funnel.
Conclusion
Drill makes your reports both simpler and smarter. By letting users explore data within a single chart, it removes clutter and keeps dashboards easy to read. If you want to turn Looker Studio into a real analysis tool, this is a feature worth mastering.
