How to Add a Cover Page in Google Docs

Google Docs does not have a one-click cover page button like Word, but you can build one in about a minute. Type your title details at the top of the first page, click after the last cover line, and select Insert › Break › Page break so the rest of the document starts on page 2. If you use headers or page numbers, check Different first page to keep them off the cover. For a ready-made design, start from a template in the Template gallery instead.

Before you start

These steps are for Google Docs in a web browser on a computer, where every option below is available. A shorter set of steps for the Android and iPhone apps is further down.

• Use Pages format. Google Docs has two layouts. Pages splits the document into printable pages. Pageless is one continuous scroll with no page breaks, so it cannot have a true cover page.
• Check the layout. Select File › Page setup and make sure Pages is selected at the top of the window, then click OK. Google explains the difference on its pages or pageless help page.
• You need edit access. If the menus are grayed out, the file was shared with you as view-only or comment-only.

How to make a cover page in Google Docs

This is the manual method. It works in a new document or one that already has content.

1. Open your document and click at the very top of the first page, before any existing text.
2. Type the title, subtitle, your name, and the date on separate lines. Press Enter after each one.
3. Click at the end of the last cover line and select Insert › Break › Page break. You can also press Ctrl + Enter (Command + Enter on a Mac). Everything after the cursor moves to page 2.
4. Select the cover text and center it with Format › Align & indent › Center or Ctrl + Shift + E (Command + Shift + E on a Mac).
5. Select the title and choose Format › Paragraph styles › Title › Apply ‘Title’. Do the same with Subtitle for the second line. You can also just pick a larger font size and bold from the toolbar.
6. Click in front of the title and press Enter a few times to move it lower on the page.

Insert the page break before you add the blank lines in step 6. The break keeps the body on its own page, so spacing changes on the cover cannot push your first paragraph around. Pressing Enter repeatedly to reach page 2 is less reliable, because any later edit to the cover shifts the body text. See how to insert a page break in Google Docs for more on breaks.

Keep headers and page numbers off the cover

A header, footer, or page number normally repeats on every page, including the cover. One checkbox fixes that.

1. Select Insert › Page elements › Header (or Footer). If the document already has one, just click inside it.
2. Check Different first page.
3. Leave the first-page header or footer empty. Then click a header on page 2 and type the text you want on the rest of the document.

Page numbers follow the same rule. Select Insert › Page elements › Page number and pick one of the layouts that skips the first page, or choose More options to apply numbering to specific pages or sections. The steps are on Google’s headers, footers, and page numbers help page, and our guides on adding page numbers in Google Docs and adding a header in Google Docs cover them in more detail.

When to use a section break instead

A section break splits the document into parts that can each have their own headers, footers, numbering, and orientation. Use one if the body needs its own numbering or a header that is not linked to the cover.

1. Click at the end of the last cover line.
2. Select Insert › Break › Section break (next page).
3. Click the header or footer on the first body page and uncheck Link to previous. That option only appears once the document has a section break.
4. Open Insert › Page elements › Page number › More options and, under Apply to, choose the section you want to number.

To see where your breaks are, select View › Show non-printing characters. Page breaks and section breaks then appear as blue markers.

Use a template for a designed cover

Templates already have the fonts, spacing, and cover artwork in place. This is the fastest route when you are starting a new document.

1. Go to docs.google.com and click Template gallery at the top right.
2. Click a template with a cover, such as a report or project proposal. A copy opens as a new document. The templates on offer vary by account and language.
3. Replace the sample title, name, and images with your own. To swap a picture, right-click it and choose Replace image.
4. Paste or type your content after the cover. If the body does not start on a new page, add a page break as described above.

Inside an open document there is also File › New › From a template. Be aware that if the document already has content, Google says the template opens in a new document tab. It does not place a cover in front of your existing pages, so the manual method is better for a finished document. Google lists both routes on its Use templates page. Working from a template is the same idea as building a newsletter from a Google Docs template.

Add an image, border, or background

• Picture or logo: select Insert › Image and choose a source such as Upload from computer. Drag a corner to resize it. To trim or adjust it, see how to crop and edit pictures in Google Docs. If the picture you want is in another document, see how to save an image from Google Docs first.
• Text over a picture: click the image and choose Behind text from the options below it. The cover text then sits on top of the image. The layout options need Pages format.
• Border: Google Docs has no page border command. A common workaround is a one-cell table: select Insert › Table, choose a single cell, type the cover text inside it, and drag the bottom edge down the page. Our guide to tables in Google Docs covers border width and color.
• Colored background: select File › Page setup and pick a Page color. This colors every page, not just the cover. For a cover-only color, use a full-page image set to Behind text or fill the one-cell table with a background color.

Make a cover page on a phone or tablet

The Google Docs app has fewer layout tools, but a basic cover works the same way.

1. Open the document in the Google Docs app. On Android, tap Edit (the pencil).
2. Tap More (three dots) at the top right, tap Page setup, and turn Pageless off.
3. Type the cover lines at the top of the document and format them from the Format button.
4. Tap after the last cover line, open the Insert menu (the plus sign), and choose Page break. Menu names can differ slightly between app versions.
5. Tap More and turn on Print layout to see the cover as its own page.

On Android, Insert › Page number also lets you choose whether the first page is skipped. Options such as Different first page and section-level settings are easier to manage on a computer.

Check the result and undo it

• Confirm: scroll to page 2. The body should begin at the top of the page, and the cover should show no header text or page number. File › Print shows a preview of how the pages will come out.
• Remove the cover: select the cover text and delete it, then click at the very start of the body and press Backspace until the break is gone and the text sits on page 1. If an empty page is left behind, see how to delete a blank page in Google Docs.
• Undo a mistake: press Ctrl + Z (Command + Z on a Mac) right away, or use version history to go back to an earlier copy.

Troubleshooting

• Page break does nothing or is missing: the document is Pageless. Select File › Page setup › Pages, or Format › Switch to Pages format.
• Header and Footer are missing from the Insert menu: same cause. Headers, footers, and page numbers are only available in Pages format. Headers hidden by Pageless come back when you switch to Pages.
• The header still shows on the cover: click the cover’s header and confirm Different first page is checked, then delete the text in that first-page header only.
• Link to previous is not there: the document has only one section. Add a section break after the cover first.
• The image will not move freely: it is set to In line. Click it and pick Wrap text, Break text, Behind text, or In front of text.
• The template gallery is not shown: on the Docs home screen, open Menu › Settings and turn on Display recent templates on home screens.

Use a Drawing Text Box for a Title Page

In Google Docs on a computer with Pages format and edit access, click before the first body content and insert Insert > Break > Page break. Return to the blank first page before that break. Choose Insert > Drawing > New, select the Text box tool and draw a box. Type the title, your name, date and any required details. Select the title text to set its font, size or bold style, then choose Save and close. Check that the drawing sits on the cover and the body starts on page 2; resize or align the drawing as needed. Double-click it to reopen the drawing editor for later changes. Google’s drawing guide documents the drawing and text-box tools. This is an optional design method; the simpler ordinary-text cover above remains useful when accessibility and easy editing matter.

Frequently asked questions

Does Google Docs have a built-in cover page feature?

No. There is no Insert Cover Page command. You either design the first page yourself and follow it with a page break, or start from a template that already includes a cover.

Is a cover image the same as a cover page?

No. A cover image is a banner across the top of a Pageless document, added by typing @cover image. Google notes that it only shows in Pageless mode and disappears if you switch to Pages, so it is not a printable cover page.

Does a cover page need to follow APA or MLA rules?

That depends on who you are writing for. Academic styles set their own rules for what goes on a title page and whether one is required, and Google Docs does not apply them for you. Follow the style guide your teacher or publisher gives you.

Can a cover page be landscape while the rest is portrait?

Yes. Select the cover content, right-click, and choose Change page to landscape. See how to make Google Docs landscape for section-by-section options.

Can I add a cover page to a document that is already written?

Yes. Click in front of the first word of the document, insert a page break, then click on the new empty first page and type the cover text. Your existing content is not changed; it just starts one page later.

Will the cover page count as page 1?

By default it does, even when the number is hidden on the cover, so the body starts at 2. To number the body from 1, put a section break after the cover and use Insert › Page elements › Page number › More options to apply numbering to the body section.

Next step

Once the cover is in place, add the title, your name, and a page number to the header on page 2 so every page after the cover is labeled. If the cover needs shapes or text placed exactly, create a drawing in Google Docs and insert it on the first page.