By default, every new Google Docs document opens as a bright, sterile white rectangle. This is perfectly fine if you are writing a standard academic essay or a corporate memo meant to be printed on standard white printer paper. However, if you are designing a digital flyer, a creative brochure, or simply prefer to write on a softer color to reduce eye strain, that glaring white background can be restrictive.
Fortunately, Google Docs allows you to completely change the background color of your document to any shade imaginable. It takes just a few clicks to transform a boring white page into a vibrant digital canvas.
This guide explains how to change the page color in Google Docs.
Step 1: Open the Page Setup Menu
The setting to change the background color is not located in the standard formatting toolbar where you find your font colors. It is actually a structural document setting.
- Open your Google Docs document.
- Look at the very top of the screen, above the formatting toolbar, and click on the File menu.
- Scroll down almost to the very bottom of the File menu and click on Page setup.
Step 2: Choose Your New Color
A new “Page setup” dialog box will appear in the center of your screen. This menu controls the physical dimensions of your document (margins, orientation, paper size), and importantly, the page color.
- Look at the bottom left corner of the dialog box for the setting labeled Page color.
- Click on the white circle next to “Page color”.
- A color palette will drop down. You have three options here:
- Basic Colors: Click any of the pre-defined color swatches in the grid (e.g., light yellow, pale blue, dark grey).
- Custom Hex Code: If you need to match a specific corporate brand color, click the “+” (Custom) button at the top of the palette and type in your specific Hex code (e.g., #FF5733).
- Eyedropper Tool: Click the “+” (Custom) button and use the eyedropper icon to select a color from an image already on your screen.
- Once you have selected your desired color, click the blue OK button at the bottom of the Page Setup box.
Your entire document will instantly change to the new color. Note that this change applies to every page in the document; you cannot have a blue page one and a red page two using this method.
Important Warning Regarding Printing
Changing the background color is an excellent feature for documents that will only ever be viewed digitally on a screen (like a PDF sent via email).
However, you should almost never print a document with a background color. If you change the background to dark blue and hit print, your physical printer will literally attempt to spray dark blue ink across the entire surface of an 8.5×11-inch piece of paper. This will consume a massive amount of expensive printer ink and likely result in a soggy, curled, unreadable document. If you need colored physical paper, leave the Google Doc white and load actual colored paper into your printer tray.