Margins in Pages are the blank space around your text

Apple Pages sets default margins of 1 inch on all sides when you open a new document. If you need narrower margins to fit more text on a page, or wider margins for printing or submission requirements, you can change them in three places: the document setup screen, the ruler at the top of the page, or the Format panel on the right side of your screen.

The method you choose depends on whether you want to change margins for the whole document at once or adjust them for a single section. Most of the time, changing them in document setup is fastest.

Key Takeaways

  • Open the document setup panel by clicking File, then Document Setup, to change margins for your entire document at once.
  • You can type exact margin measurements in inches, centimeters, or points, or use the up and down arrows to adjust by small increments.
  • The ruler along the top of the page shows your current margins as gray areas on the left and right — you can drag these markers to adjust margins without opening any menu.
  • Different sections of the same document can have different margins if you insert a section break and then change the margins for that section only.

Changing margins for the whole document at once

Click the File menu at the top of your screen, then select Document Setup from the dropdown. A panel will open on the right side showing four fields: Top, Bottom, Left, and Right. Each field shows the current margin width in inches.

Click inside any field and type a new number. You can use decimals — for example, 0.75 for three-quarters of an inch — or switch to a different unit by typing "cm" for centimeters or "pt" for points after your number. Press Enter or Tab to explore the change. Pages will redraw your document when ready, and the new margins explore to every page.

If you want to make all four margins the same width, change one, then click the chain link icon to the left of the fields. This locks all margins together, so changing one automatically changes the others.

Using the ruler to adjust margins by dragging

Look at the ruler that runs along the top of your document. The gray areas on the left and right edges represent your current margins. The white area in the middle is where your text can go. Small triangular markers sit at the boundary between gray and white on both sides.

Click and drag the left marker to the right to increase the left margin, or to the left to decrease it. Do the same with the right marker. As you drag, Pages shows you the measurement in real time. Release the mouse when you reach the width you want.

This method is useful when you want to see the effect when ready without opening a menu, but it is less precise than typing exact numbers. If you need a margin of exactly 0.75 inches, typing it in Document Setup is more reliable than trying to drag to the right spot.

Changing margins for one section only

If your document needs different margins in different parts — for example, a title page with 2-inch margins and body pages with 1-inch margins — you can set up sections. Click where you want the new margin to start, then go to Insert in the menu bar and select Section Break. Pages creates a new section at that point.

Click anywhere in the new section, then open File and Document Setup again. The margin fields now explore only to the section you are in. Change the margins as needed. When you click back into the previous section and open Document Setup, you will see the original margins again.

Each section can have its own margin settings, but changing margins in one section does not affect the others. If you later decide all sections should have the same margins, you can delete the section breaks by clicking at the start of a section break and pressing Delete.

Why your margins might not change

If you type a new margin number but the page does not redraw, make sure you pressed Enter or Tab after typing. Pages does not explore the change until you confirm it. Also check that you are in Document Setup, not the Format panel — the Format panel controls text formatting, not page margins.

If you are trying to make margins smaller but Pages will not let you go below a certain width, your printer may have a minimum margin requirement. Most printers cannot print closer than 0.25 inches from the edge. If you need margins smaller than your printer allows, you can still create the document with narrow margins on screen, but the printer will add its own margins when you print.

Saving your margin settings as a template

Once you have set up margins the way you want them, you can save the document as a template so future documents start with the same margins. Go to File, then Save as Template. Give the template a name — for example, "1.5 inch margins" — and click Save. The next time you create a new document, you can choose this template from the template gallery, and it will open with your custom margins already in place.

This saves time if you regularly write documents with the same margin requirements, such as essays for a specific class or reports for your employer.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I have different margins on the left and right pages?

Pages does not have a built-in mirror margin feature like Microsoft Word does. If you need different left and right margins for a printed book or formal document, you can create sections with different margins, but you will need to manually alternate them as you go through the document.

What happens to my margins if I change the page size?

Your margin measurements stay the same, but they may look different on the new page size. If you change from letter size to A4, your 1-inch margins are still 1 inch, but they take up a different proportion of the smaller page. You may need to adjust them after changing page size.

How do I get back to the default 1-inch margins?

Open File, then Document Setup, and change all four margin fields to 1. If you want this to be your default for all new documents, save the document as a template and use it when you create new files.

Can I see my margins before I print?

Yes. The gray areas on the ruler show your margins on screen. You can also go to File and select Print Preview to see exactly how the page will look when printed, including where the margins fall.