How to Add Headings and Collapsible Headings in Google Docs (2024)

If you’re new to the Google Docs experience, it will take some time to get used to even the simplest of things. That includes making headings and the slightly more complex collapsible headings in Docs. Knowing how to add different kinds of headings really elevates the aesthetics of your document. So, as your guiding light, we have outlined the process in the simplest of ways. Let’s begin!

Add Headings in Google Docs

Talking about regular headings first, you can easily add them in Google Docs via both the web and mobile versions. Follow these steps and you should learn it all in no time:

On Web

• Head over to Google Docs using your desired web browser on your PC.
• Then, drag your mouse to the sentence line that you want to turn into a header and triple-left-click to select it. You can also simply hold your left click and swipe your cursor over a text to select it.

• Once selected, from the top toolbar, select Normal text.
• Then, hover your cursor over any of the headings from the drop-down menu and click on ‘Apply Heading’.

• Alternatively, after selecting the text, Windows users can simply use the Ctrl + Alt + 1, Ctrl + Alt + 2, and Ctrl + Alt + 3 shortcuts to make it H1, H2, or H3 respectively. Meanwhile, Mac users will need to use the Command key instead of Ctrl to do the same.

On Mobile (Android and iOS)

You can create headings via the Google Docs mobile app (Android, iOS) as well. The process is very similar on both the Android and iOS mobile apps as well, apart from subtle interface changes. Here’s a quick rundown of the steps:

• First things first, when in a Docs document, double tap anywhere on the text line that you want to turn into a heading to summon the text selector.
• Then, you can drag the text selector left and right sliders to fully select your desired body of text. Otherwise, you can simply place the cursor in the text line you want to make a header out of.
• Once done, tap on the capital A icon that you see at the top panel. That will summon the formatting options.
• Here, you will find the Normal text option similar to how you get on the web version. Tap on it.
• Doing so will show up all the headings to choose from. Simply tap on the heading you want to assign to your text.
• Once done, exit the formatting menu by tapping on the cross icon and that’s it.

Add Collapsible Headings in Google Docs

While adding those standard headings certainly makes your document look aesthetic, if your document gets extra long, it can start to look all too messy. In that case, wouldn’t each of these headings being collapsible make things a lot cleaner?

That way, you can easily hide the text under each of your headings like a pro, which shows up only when you expand the heading.

Well, you can do so easily via the web version of Docs, you can’t add collapsible headings in the Google Docs app on Android and iOS. With that said, let’s take a look at the steps:

• When in the document you want to add collapsible headings, from the toolbar menu, click on Format.
• Then, click on Switch to Pageless format.

• Now, every existing heading in your document will become collapsible alongside any new ones that you add. A small arrow will appear beside every heading in the document. Simply clicking on it expands the heading to reveal the text.

And, that’s it. You can easily create as many collapsible headings as you want this way.

That brings us to the end of this guide. But, did you know that you can also use AI in Google Docs to write content? Check out our interlinked guide to know how. Meanwhile, if you have any further queries, do drop them in the comments down below!