Adding a text box takes three clicks
Open your Google Docs document and click Insert in the menu bar at the top. A dropdown menu appears. Click Text box. Your cursor changes to a crosshair, and you can now draw a box anywhere on the page by clicking and dragging.
Once you release the mouse, a text box appears with a blinking cursor inside. Start typing immediately — whatever you type goes into that box. The box has a blue border while you are editing it, which disappears when you click elsewhere on the page.
Text boxes are useful when you need text to sit in a specific spot that regular paragraphs cannot reach, or when you want to add a note or label that floats separately from your main document flow.
Key Takeaways
- Click Insert, then Text box, then drag to create a box anywhere on your page.
- You can resize a text box by dragging its corners, and move it by clicking and dragging the border itself.
- Text boxes can have their own formatting — change the font, size, color, and alignment without affecting the rest of your document.
- Right-click a text box border to add a background color, change the border style, or delete the box entirely.
Resizing and moving your text box
After you create a text box, you can make it bigger or smaller. Click once on the text box border (not inside it) so you see the blue selection handles — small squares at the corners and edges. Drag any corner handle to resize the box while keeping its proportions, or drag an edge handle to stretch it in one direction only.
To move the text box to a different spot on the page, click the border and drag the entire box. Do not click inside the text box itself, or you will enter edit mode and your cursor will be ready to type instead. If you are inside the box and want to move it, press Escape first to exit edit mode, then click the border and drag.
Formatting text inside the box
Text inside a text box can be formatted separately from the rest of your document. Click inside the box to enter edit mode, then select the text you want to change. Use the toolbar at the top to adjust the font, size, color, bold, italic, or alignment — just as you would with regular paragraph text.
You can also select all the text in the box by pressing Ctrl+A (or Cmd+A on Mac), then apply formatting to everything at once. The formatting you apply stays inside that box only and does not affect text elsewhere in your document.
Adding a background or border to your text box
Right-click on the text box border to open a menu with formatting options. Click Color to add a background color to the box itself. A color picker appears — choose a color or type in a hex code if you know one. Click Border color to change the color of the box outline, or Border weight to make the outline thicker or thinner.
If you want no border at all, click Border weight and select the option that shows no line. You can also click Opacity to make the background color transparent or solid. These options let you create text boxes that blend into your document or stand out as highlighted sections.
Connecting text boxes with lines or arrows
If you create multiple text boxes, you can draw lines or arrows between them. Click Insert, then Line, and choose the style you want — a straight line, arrow, or curved connector. Draw the line from one text box to another. This is useful for diagrams, flowcharts, or documents where you need to show relationships between different text sections.
You can format these lines the same way you format text box borders — right-click the line and choose a color or weight. The line stays in place even if you move the text boxes, so you may need to redraw it if you rearrange your layout significantly.
Deleting a text box
Click once on the text box border to select the entire box (you should see the blue selection handles). Press Delete or Backspace, and the text box disappears. If you click inside the box first and then press Delete, you will only delete the text inside, not the box itself — so make sure you are selecting the border, not the text.
If you delete a text box by accident, press Ctrl+Z (or Cmd+Z on Mac) to undo the deletion immediately.
Text boxes versus regular paragraphs
A text box is different from a regular paragraph because it can sit anywhere on the page and does not push other text around. When you add a regular paragraph, it shifts everything below it down. A text box floats on top of or beside your document content without moving anything else.
Use a text box when you need a label, callout, or note in a specific location. Use regular paragraphs for the main flow of your document. Some people use text boxes to create sidebars, highlight important information, or add annotations without disrupting the document structure.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I lock a text box so it does not move accidentally?
Google Docs does not have a built-in lock feature for text boxes. To prevent accidental movement, you can place the text box in a location where you are unlikely to click it, or use a table instead if you need fixed positioning. Tables stay in place and do not float like text boxes do.
What happens to a text box if I delete the page it is on?
If a text box is on a page and you delete all the content on that page, the text box may move to the previous page or disappear depending on how Google Docs handles the layout. To be safe, delete the text box itself before deleting surrounding content, or use Undo if something unexpected happens.
Can I copy a text box and paste it elsewhere in my document?
Yes. Click the text box border to select it, press Ctrl+C (or Cmd+C on Mac) to copy, then click where you want it and press Ctrl+V (or Cmd+V on Mac) to paste. The copied text box appears in the same position, so you may need to drag it to a new location.
Why does my text box disappear when I print or export my document?
Text boxes usually print and export normally, but if yours does not appear, check that the text box has a background color or border — some printers do not show text boxes with no visible outline. Add a border color or background to make it print reliably.