How to Add Footnotes in Google Docs

To add a footnote in Google Docs on a computer, click where you want the footnote number, then click Insert > Page elements > Footnote and type your note. The faster route is the keyboard shortcut: Ctrl + Alt + F on Windows or a Chromebook, or Command + Option + F on a Mac. Google Docs adds a small raised number in your text and a matching note at the bottom of the page.

A footnote is a short note at the bottom of a page that explains or gives a source for something in the main text. The small number in the text is called the reference number, and it points to the note with the same number. This guide covers adding, viewing, editing, and removing footnotes on a computer, an Android device, and an iPhone or iPad, plus what to do when the option is missing or the notes land in the wrong place.

What You Need Before You Start

• A Google Doc you can edit. If the document was shared with you as a viewer or commenter, ask the owner for edit access first.
• A web browser or the Google Docs app. The computer steps use Google Docs in a browser. The phone and tablet steps use the Google Docs app for Android, iPhone, or iPad.
• A document in pages format, if you want notes at the bottom of each page. Google Docs has two layouts: Pages, which has page breaks, and Pageless, which scrolls continuously. Footnotes work in both, but they appear in different places. That is explained below.

The steps here follow Google’s own help page, Use headers, footers, page numbers & footnotes. Google has moved the Footnote command into a Page elements submenu, so older instructions that say only Insert > Footnote may not match what you see.

How to Add a Footnote in Google Docs on a Computer

1. Open your document in Google Docs.
2. Click in the text where you want the footnote number to go. This is usually right after the word, quote, or sentence the note is about.
3. In the top left, click Insert.
4. Point to Page elements. If your menu does not show Page elements, look for Footnote directly in the Insert menu.
5. Click Footnote. A small number appears where you clicked, and the cursor moves to a new note with the same number at the bottom of the page.
6. Type your footnote.
7. Click back in the main text to keep writing.

Repeat the steps for each note. Google Docs numbers the footnotes for you, so you do not type the numbers yourself.

Add a Footnote With the Keyboard Shortcut

If you add a lot of notes, the shortcut saves several clicks. Click where the number should go, then press the keys for your computer. These come from Google’s keyboard shortcuts for Google Docs list.

Action	Windows or Chromebook	Mac
Insert footnote	Ctrl + Alt + F	Command + Option + F
Move to next footnote	Hold Ctrl + Alt, press N then F	Hold Ctrl + Command, press N then F
Move to previous footnote	Hold Ctrl + Alt, press P then F	Hold Ctrl + Command, press P then F
Move to current footnote	Hold Ctrl + Alt, press E then F	Hold Ctrl + Command, press E then F

The three “move to” shortcuts are handy in a long paper because you can jump from note to note without scrolling.

How to Add a Footnote on Android

1. Open the document in the Google Docs app on your Android phone or tablet.
2. Tap Edit (the pencil icon).
3. Tap where you want to insert the footnote.
4. In the menu at the top, tap Insert (the plus sign), then tap Footnote.
5. Type your footnote.

To see footnotes where they sit on the page, tap More (the three dots) in the top right and turn on Print Layout. Google lists this as the way to view a footnote in the Android app.

How to Add a Footnote on iPhone or iPad

1. Open the document in the Google Docs app on your iPhone or iPad.
2. Tap Edit (the pencil icon).
3. Tap where you want to insert the footnote.
4. In the menu at the top, tap Insert (the plus sign), then tap Footnote.
5. Type your footnote.

To view footnotes afterward, tap More and turn on Print Layout. The steps match the Android app, which Google documents on the iPhone and iPad version of its footnotes help page.

How to Check That the Footnote Worked

• Look for a small raised number in the main text where you clicked or tapped.
• Scroll to the bottom of the same page. You should see the same number followed by your note.
• In a pageless document, scroll to the very end of the document instead.
• In the mobile app, turn on Print Layout if you do not see the notes.

Where Footnotes Appear: Pages vs. Pageless

In pages format, each footnote sits at the bottom of the page that holds its number. In pageless format there are no pages, so Google says the footnotes all appear together at the end of the document. If your notes are at the end and you expected them at the bottom of each page, your document is in pageless format.

Before you switch, know what else changes. Google warns that pageless documents do not show headers, footers, page numbers, or watermarks, and you cannot add columns. Those items come back when you return to pages format.

1. On your computer, open the document in Google Docs.
2. Click File > Page setup.
3. At the top of the box, select Pages or Pageless.
4. Click OK.

You can also click Format and choose Switch to Pages format or Switch to Pageless format. Both routes are in Google’s guide to changing a document’s page setup. To undo the change, repeat the steps and pick the other format.

How to Edit or Format a Footnote

A footnote is regular text, so you edit it in place. Scroll to the note at the bottom of the page, click inside it, and type your changes. On a computer you can also use the “move to next footnote” shortcut from the table above to get there.

To change how a note looks, select its text and use the same toolbar controls you use for the rest of the document, such as the font, font size, bold, and italic buttons. If you paste a source into a note and it brings odd formatting with it, paste with Ctrl + Shift + V (or Command + Shift + V on a Mac) instead. Google lists that shortcut as Paste without formatting. You can also add a link inside a note the same way you add a hyperlink in Google Docs.

Google’s help page does not describe a setting for changing the footnote numbering style or restarting the numbers, so plan on the automatic numbering.

How to Delete a Footnote

Warning: removing the reference number removes the whole note, including everything you typed in it. If you may want the wording later, copy the note text first.

1. Find the small footnote number in the main text, not the note at the bottom of the page.
2. Click just after the number.
3. Press Backspace on Windows or a Chromebook, or Delete on a Mac.

The number and its note should both go away, and the remaining footnotes renumber. Erasing only the text at the bottom of the page leaves an empty note and its number behind. If you delete a footnote by mistake, press Ctrl + Z (or Command + Z on a Mac) right away to bring it back. Google’s footnote help page does not spell out the delete steps, so if your screen behaves differently, select the number in the text and delete it like any other character.

Troubleshooting Footnotes in Google Docs

The Footnote option is not in the Insert menu

Look under Insert > Page elements. Google’s current instructions place Footnote there, next to Header, Footer, and Page number. If you cannot find it, click in the document body and press the keyboard shortcut instead.

The Insert menu is gray or missing

You probably do not have edit access. A document shared as view-only or comment-only cannot take new footnotes. Ask the owner to change your role to editor, or make your own copy with File > Make a copy if the owner allows copying.

The keyboard shortcut does nothing

Click inside the main text first so the cursor is in the document, then try again. A browser extension or another program can also claim the same key combination. If that happens, use the menu route, which does the same thing.

Footnotes do not show on a phone or tablet

Turn on Print Layout from the More menu in the Google Docs app. Google says this is how you view a footnote on Android, iPhone, and iPad.

All the footnotes are at the end of the document

The document is in pageless format. Switch to pages format with File > Page setup > Pages, as shown above.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the shortcut for a footnote in Google Docs?

Press Ctrl + Alt + F on Windows or a Chromebook, or Command + Option + F on a Mac. Google Docs inserts the next footnote number at the cursor and moves you to the note so you can type.

Do footnotes count toward the word count?

No. Google says the word count covers everything except headers, footers, and footnotes, unless you select a section of the document first. See how to get a word count in Google Docs for the steps.

Can I make endnotes in Google Docs?

Google’s help pages describe footnotes only and do not list a separate endnote command. The closest built-in option is pageless format, where every footnote appears together at the end of the document. If you need page numbers and headers too, you can stay in pages format and type a “Notes” section at the end by hand.

Is a footnote the same as a footer?

No. A footer is text that repeats at the bottom of every page, such as a title or page number. A footnote is a single numbered note tied to one spot in your text. On a computer, both are under Insert > Page elements.

Does the Citations tool create footnotes?

No. The tool under Tools > Citations inserts in-text citations and a bibliography in MLA, APA, or Chicago Author-Date style, according to Google’s citations help page. If your class or publisher wants sources in footnotes, add each footnote with the steps above and type the source into the note. For the Citations tool steps, see our guide to the Google Docs research tools.

Will my footnotes stay when I download the document?

They are part of the document, so they are meant to carry over when you print or save a Google Doc as a PDF. Check the last lines of each page in the exported file before you send it, especially if you changed between pages and pageless format.

Next Steps

Once your notes are in place, finish the rest of the page layout. These guides cover the tasks that usually come next in a report or school paper:

• How to get a word count in Google Docs
• How to insert a page break in Google Docs
• How to save a Google Doc as a PDF
• How to add a cover page in Google Docs