Adding a text box takes three clicks

Open your Google Docs document and click Insert in the menu bar at the top. From the dropdown, select Text box. Your cursor will change to a crosshair. Click and drag on the page to draw the box to the size you want — you can make it small or stretch it across most of the page. Release the mouse, and the text box is ready for typing.

The text box appears as a floating element on top of your document, separate from the main text flow. This means you can position it anywhere — overlapping other text, in the margin, or in the middle of a paragraph — without affecting how the rest of your document wraps. If you need to move it later, click inside the box border and drag it to a new spot.

Key Takeaways

  • Text boxes are created through Insert > Text box and drawn by clicking and dragging on the page.
  • Text boxes float independently of your main document text, so they do not push other words around when you move them.
  • You can change the box color, border style, and text formatting the same way you would format regular text.
  • Text boxes work well for callouts, sidebars, or information you want to separate visually from the main body.

Resizing and moving your text box

Once you have drawn a text box, small squares appear at the corners and edges. Click and drag any of these squares to resize the box — corner squares let you resize in two directions at once, while edge squares resize in one direction only. If you drag a corner square while holding Shift, the box will resize while keeping its proportions the same.

To move the text box, position your cursor on the border (not inside the text) until you see a four-way arrow, then click and drag the entire box to a new location. If you click inside the text area instead, you will enter edit mode and the cursor will be ready for typing rather than moving the box.

Formatting text inside the box

Click inside the text box and start typing. The text you type behaves like regular document text — you can make it bold, italic, or underlined using the toolbar buttons, or use keyboard shortcuts like Ctrl+B (Cmd+B on Mac) for bold. You can also change the font, size, and color the same way you would in the main document.

To format all the text in the box at once, press Ctrl+A (Cmd+A on Mac) while your cursor is inside the box, then explore your formatting. If you want only some words formatted differently, select just those words before explore the change.

Changing the box appearance

Right-click on the text box border and select Format options. A panel opens on the right side of your screen with three tabs: Line, Fill, and Adjust. Under Line, you can change the border color, thickness, and style (solid, dashed, or dotted). Under Fill, you can add a background color to the box or leave it transparent.

The Adjust tab controls transparency (how see-through the box is) and lets you rotate the box if needed. If you do not want a visible border at all, set the line color to transparent or the line weight to zero. Many people use a light background color with no border to create a subtle highlight or callout box.

Deleting or copying a text box

To delete a text box, click on its border (not inside the text) and press Delete or Backspace. Clicking inside the text and pressing Delete will only erase the text inside, not the box itself. To copy a text box, click the border, press Ctrl+C (Cmd+C on Mac), then press Ctrl+V (Cmd+V on Mac) to paste it. The copy appears slightly offset from the original so you can see both.

If you want to copy a text box to a different document, copy it in the same way, switch to the other document, and paste. The box will retain its formatting and text.

Text boxes versus other layout options

Google Docs offers a few ways to separate content visually. A text box floats freely and does not affect document flow, making it good for sidebars, callouts, or information you want positioned in a specific spot. A table works better if you need organized rows and columns. A page break or section break is better if you want to start new content on a fresh page.

If you want text to wrap around an image or shape, use the text wrapping feature on that image or shape instead of a text box. Text boxes do not wrap text around them — other elements wrap around text boxes instead.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I make a text box transparent so only the text shows?

Yes. Right-click the box border, select Format options, go to the Fill tab, and choose the transparent option (usually shown as no color or a blank square). You can keep the border visible or remove that too by setting the line color to transparent in the Line tab.

What happens if I paste text into a text box?

The text pastes into the box and wraps to fit the box width. If the text is longer than the box height, it will overflow — the box does not automatically expand or create a scrollbar. You can manually resize the box to fit the text, or edit the text to make it shorter.

Can I link text inside a text box?

Yes. Select the text you want to link, press Ctrl+K (Cmd+K on Mac), and enter the URL. The link works the same way as a link in regular document text.

Do text boxes print when I print my document?

Yes, text boxes print exactly as they appear on screen, including any background color or border. If you do not want a text box to print, you would need to delete it before printing or use a different method to mark up your document.