- Setting up Google Docs pages for a booklet layout
- Splitting each Google Docs sheet into booklet panels with columns
- Mixing upright covers and sideways inner pages in one Google Doc
- Planning the page order before you print a Google Docs booklet
- Printing your Google Docs booklet at home or in a print shop
- Making a Google Docs booklet useful for your business
- When your Google Docs booklet layout won't behave
- Frequently asked questions
To make a booklet in Google Docs, open File, then Page setup, choose Pages and set the page sideways, then use Format, then Columns to split each sheet into panels. Google Docs has no booklet button, so plan your page order on a folded mock-up first and use your printer's double-sided options.
A short booklet is one of the most useful things a small business can hand over: a welcome pack for new clients, a workshop handout, a menu, a programme for a local event. Google Docs is free, it's already in most people's browser, and it can get you most of the way there.
I'll be straight with you from the start, though. Google's own help pages don't describe a booklet button in Docs, and I couldn't find a 'pages per sheet' option documented anywhere in Docs Editors Help. What you get instead are the building blocks: page setup, columns, section breaks and printing. Put those together in the right order and you've got a booklet you can print, fold and staple.
Setting up Google Docs pages for a booklet layout
Everything starts in Page setup. Google's help says you change orientation, paper size, margins and page colour through File, then Page setup, then Pages. There's one catch that trips people up: those options aren't available in pageless format, so switch your document to Pages first.
- Open a new document in Google Docs on a computer.
- Click File, then Page setup.
- Choose Pages at the top of the box (not Pageless).
- Set the orientation. Sideways (horizontal) suits a fold-in-half booklet, upright suits a stapled stack of single pages.
- Pick your paper size and tighten the margins a little so the fold doesn't eat your text.
- Click OK and check the page outline on screen.
If you change your mind later, you can come back to the same box at any point. Nothing is locked once you've chosen it.
Splitting each Google Docs sheet into booklet panels with columns
The classic home-printed booklet is a sideways sheet folded down the middle, which gives you two panels per side. Columns are the easiest way to fake that in Docs. According to Google's help, you select your text, click Format, then Columns, and choose how many you want.
- Select the text that should sit in panels (or the whole document, if every page is panelled).
- Click Format, then Columns.
- Choose the two-column layout for a simple fold.
- To push text to the top of the next panel, click Insert, then Break, then Column break.
That column break is your best friend here. Without it, a paragraph happily runs across the fold and splits awkwardly. With it, every panel starts where you want it to.
Mixing upright covers and sideways inner pages in one Google Doc
Here's a detail many people miss. Google's help says a single document can mix upright and sideways. You add a section break with Insert, then Break, then Section break, and then set the orientation for each section on its own.
That's handy when you want an upright cover sheet that you print separately and glue or staple to the front, while the inside pages stay sideways with two panels. It's also useful for a fold-out map or schedule in the middle of an otherwise standard document.
Planning the page order before you print a Google Docs booklet
This is the bit no software does for you in Docs. When you fold sheets into a booklet, the pages don't print in reading order. The back cover and front cover share one side of the outer sheet, and so on inwards. If you type the pages in normal order and print, the folded result comes out jumbled.
My workaround is low-tech and reliable. Before writing anything, take a few sheets of paper, fold them into a mock booklet, number each panel in pencil, then unfold it. That shows you exactly which panel goes where on each side of each sheet. Lay your Docs panels out to match that map.
| Booklet job | Where to do it in Google Docs |
|---|---|
| Change orientation or paper size | File, then Page setup, then Pages |
| Make two panels on a sideways sheet | Format, then Columns |
| Start text at the top of the next panel | Insert, then Break, then Column break |
| Different orientation for one part | Insert, then Break, then Section break |
| Print the finished booklet | File, then Print |
| Save a file to print elsewhere | File, then Download |
Printing your Google Docs booklet at home or in a print shop
When the layout's ready, Google's help says you print with File, then Print, choose your settings and click Print. A pageless document can still print, but it may look different in the preview, which is one more reason to stay in Pages for anything you'll fold.
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In Firefox or Safari, Google says File, then Print downloads a PDF automatically, which you then open and print from your PDF viewer. You can also go to File, then Download, pick a file format and print that copy instead. A PDF is what most print shops will ask for, so it's worth saving one either way.
For double-sided printing and any booklet setting, look at your printer's own options or your PDF viewer's print box. Those vary by device, and some printer software offers a booklet mode that reorders pages for you. Run one test sheet before you print a full batch, because flipping on the long edge versus the short edge changes everything.
Making a Google Docs booklet useful for your business
A booklet works best when it does one job. For a client welcome pack, keep it to what they need in the first week: how to reach you, what happens next, and the answers to the questions you always get. For an event, put the timings and the map near the middle where it falls open naturally.
If you collect sign-ups at the event, a simple tick-box sheet pairs well with a printed handout, and my walkthrough on adding a checkbox in Google Sheets covers that side. And if you want a moving version of your cover for social posts, the steps in making a GIF in Canva get you there in a few minutes.
When your Google Docs booklet layout won't behave
- Page setup options greyed out or missing: you're in pageless format. Switch to Pages in File, then Page setup.
- Text running across the fold: add a column break where each panel should start.
- Cover printing the wrong way round: put the cover in its own section with a section break and set its orientation separately.
- Print preview looks odd: check you're not printing a pageless document, then try downloading a PDF and printing that.
- Menus look different: Google updates Docs regularly, so menus vary by app version. The names above match Google's current help pages.
Frequently asked questions
Does Google Docs have a booklet template or setting?
Google's Docs Editors Help doesn't describe a dedicated booklet feature. You build one with Page setup, Columns and breaks, then use your printer or PDF viewer's options for double-sided or booklet printing.
How do I make two pages on one sheet in Google Docs?
Set the page sideways in File, then Page setup, then select your text and choose Format, then Columns, with two columns. Use Insert, then Break, then Column break to start each panel cleanly.
Why can't I change the page size in Google Docs?
Page setup options such as orientation, paper size and margins aren't available in pageless format. Switch to Pages in File, then Page setup, and the options come back.
Can one Google Doc have upright and sideways pages?
Yes. Google's help says you add a section break with Insert, then Break, then Section break, and set the orientation for each section separately.
How do I print a booklet from Google Docs?
Click File, then Print, choose your settings and print. In Firefox or Safari this downloads a PDF that you open and print from your PDF viewer. You can also download the file first and print it from another app.
