The hanging indent is a classic staple of word processing software. One such platform isGoogle Docs, which is completely free to start using. Google Docs is packed with all kinds of features and settings, to the point where some of its more basic capabilities are overlooked.

Sure, there are plenty of interface elements you may never use, but something as useful as the hanging indent option should receive some kind of limelight.

Difficulty

What You Need

Access to Google Docs

And we’re just the publication to power on the neon bulbs of discovery! We’ve written up a guide to get you adding hanging indents in Google Docs in no time.

How to create a hanging indent in Google Docs

Step 1:Open Google Docs to start. Log in if necessary, and find the document inGoogle Drivethat you want to apply hanging indents to.

Navigate to the left part of your document, and place the cursor at the beginning of the paragraph you want to indent.

Step 2:Navigate to the Google Docs menu at the top and click on theFormatdrop-down menu.

Step 3:In theFormatmenu, go toAlign & Indent. When this menu pops open, chooseIndentation Options.

Step 4:Indentation Optionswill open a new window where you may customize an indentation. Go to theSpecial indentsection, which should currently sayNone.

Step 5:Select the menu and chooseHanging.

Step 6:Now you will see a number on the right, noting how long the hanging indent will be. It should be set to the traditional 0.5 inch, but you can adjust this if you want to.

Step 7:When finished, selectApply. The paragraph you were on should now have a hanging indent.

You can alsochange the margins of your Google Docsdocument.

Step 8:If you have multiple paragraphs or sections to indent all at once, it’s no problem. Just highlight them all before using the steps above. Then the hanging indent will automatically apply to the entire highlighted section.

ensure you’re making the most of this free software – learn theseGoogle Docs tricks.