Adding borders and color to paragraphs in Google Docs can make your document look more professional and add a touch of personality. Here are three tips to get started:
- Choose the right color for your document. When adding borders and color, it’s important to choose a color that will compliment your document’s overall tone. For example, if you want your document to look professional, choose a blue or green background. If you want your document to be more personal, choose a yellow or orange background.
- Add borders using the border tool. To add borders around specific areas of your document, use the border tool. This tool allows you to create lines of text that are either straight or curved, and it can also be used to add shadows and highlights on your text. To add a border using the border tool: hold down the left mouse button and drag the cursor over the desired area of text; then release the mouse button when you have created a line of text that meets the criteria you set (e.g., straight).
There are plenty of ways to make text stand out in Google Docs. You can use a specific font style, formatting, or highlight text with color. Another option is to add borders or shading to your paragraphs.
Maybe you have a report where you want to put a box around a block of text. Or maybe you have an instructional document where you want to color a paragraph of essential text. Whatever the case, we’ll show you how to add borders and shading to your paragraphs.
Add a Border or Color to a Paragraph
Head to Google Docs, open your document, and select the paragraph by dragging your cursor through the text. This highlights it in blue.
Go to Format in the menu, move your cursor to Paragraph Styles, and pick “Borders and Shading” in the pop-out menu.
When the Borders and Shading window appears, you can make your selections.
To add a border, start by choosing the Border Width. You’ll then see the line locations highlighted at the top. Click to select or deselect the border Positions you want to use.
You can then use the drop-down boxes for Border Dash to pick a line style and Border Color to choose an option from the color palette.
To apply shading to the paragraph, use the Background Color drop-down box. You can use shading with or without a border.
One more option is the Paragraph Padding at the bottom of the window. This lets you add more or less space between the text and the border or for the background color.
When you finish setting up the border or shading, click “Apply.”
If you decide to remove a border or color you add to your paragraph, you can easily reset the changes you make. Select the paragraph and return to Format > Paragraph Styles > Borders and Shading. Click “Reset” in the pop-up window.
Making a section of text in your Google Doc stand out is easy with borders and shading. And if you want to apply those same formats to additional paragraphs in your document, learn how to copy formatting in Google Docs.
