Whenever you type a URL (like “www.google.com”) or an email address into a Google Docs document and press the spacebar, the application instantly converts your plain text into a clickable, blue, underlined hyperlink. While this automatic detection is incredibly useful for writing web copy or emails, it can be extremely frustrating if you are writing programming code, creating a printed flyer where clicking is impossible, or formatting a strict academic bibliography that requires plain text URLs. You can completely disable this automatic linking feature.
How to Turn Off Automatic Link Detection
You can adjust this formatting behavior within the general preferences menu.
- Open your web browser and navigate to a document in Google Docs.
- Click on the Tools menu located in the top toolbar.
- Select Preferences from the drop-down list.
- A new “Preferences” window will appear in the center of your screen. Ensure you are on the General tab.
- Look for the checkbox labelled Automatically detect links.
- Click the checkbox to uncheck it.
- Click the blue OK button at the bottom right of the window to save your changes.
From now on, when you type a web address or an email address and hit the spacebar, Google Docs will leave it as standard, unformatted black text. If you ever need to create a link manually, you can simply highlight the text and press Ctrl + K (or Cmd + K on a Mac) to insert the hyperlink yourself.