How to Make an Outline in Google Docs (Step-by-Step Guide)

An outline in Google Docs is a built-in navigation tool that helps you structure long documents. Instead of scrolling endlessly, you can use the outline sidebar to jump between sections with a click.

Whether you’re writing an essay, report, research paper, or eBook, the outline makes your work easier to organize and navigate.

Here’s a quick tutorial on how to make, add to, and use an outline in Google Docs.

What Is the Outline Tool in Google Docs?

The outline tool in Google Docs is a sidebar panel that shows a clickable list of headings in your document. Each heading you apply (Heading 1, Heading 2, Heading 3) automatically appears in the outline.

Outline vs Table of Contents:

• Outline → A live navigation tool in the sidebar.
• Table of Contents → A static list you insert into the document body.

How to Use Document Outline Google Docs

To utilize the Google Docs outline tool effectively, your document should consist of proper titles, headings, and subheadings. If the document doesn’t have a header structure then you need to create it manually. Below we will see how to create, update and show outlines in Google Docs.

How to Add an Outline in Google Docs

To add an outline in Google Docs you have to manually create a header structure in a document then Google Docs will automatically create a heading as an outline on the sidebar.

1. On your desktop computer open Google Docs
2. In the “Menu bar” go to “Format” > “Paragraph styles” to give a suitable header structure to the document including main heading and subheadings.
3. Once the document is formatted with the header structure, Google Docs will automatically create a heading outline.

Show Google Docs Outline Sidebar

1. After formatting the document, in the “Menu bar” go to the “View” option then navigate and click on “Show document outline”
2. The outline will show all the headings and subheadings in an indented format according to their hierarchical levels.
3. You can also use “Ctrl+Alt+A” or “Ctrl+Alt+H” as a Google Docs outline shortcut with the help of a keyboard.

How to Edit or Remove Items from the Outline

You can change, remove and use the document outline to move around the content just like using a table of contents in Google Docs.

To edit the text in the document outline section, make changes to the headings in the document and hit the “Update”. The document outline text in Google Docs will automatically reflect the changes.

You can also remove sections from the outline by hovering over the heading and clicking the “X” symbol.

Navigating with the Outline

For navigating in the document with the help of an outline just click any heading, and you will directly jump to the particular section of the page.

What if Google Docs outline not showing

If your document doesn’t consist of title, heading, or subheading outline will not be shown. Ensure your document is organized with proper headers, and you will be able to view the outline in Google Docs

Conclusion

Using the Outline in Google Docs is the fastest way to keep long documents organized. By applying heading styles, you can create a dynamic, clickable outline in just a few steps.