How to Completely Disable ‘Pageless Format’ (Infinite Scrolling) as Default in Google Docs

Google Docs recently introduced a massive UI shift called “Pageless Format.” Instead of dividing your document into standard 8.5×11 inch virtual paper pages separated by grey space, Pageless Format removes the boundaries entirely, creating an infinite, fluid scrolling canvas similar to a standard webpage.

While this is fantastic for drafting emails or writing code snippets where page breaks do not matter, it is an absolute disaster for formatting formal reports, academic papers, or legal documents intended for physical printing or PDF export. Without strict page boundaries, it is impossible to accurately place headers, footers, page numbers, or ensure that a large chart does not awkwardly split across two pieces of paper. If you prefer the traditional, strict word processor layout, you can completely disable the Pageless Format default setting.

Disabling Pageless Format via Page Setup

You can turn off Pageless Mode on a document-by-document basis, and you can also instruct Google Docs to never use it as the default layout for future documents.

1. Open the Google Docs website and open a new or existing document.
2. Look at the main menu bar at the top of the screen and click on File (in the top-left corner).
3. Scroll all the way down the dropdown menu and click on Page setup.
4. A new dialogue box will appear with two tabs at the very top: “Pages” and “Pageless.”
5. Click on the Pages tab to switch the current document back to the traditional format.
6. You can now adjust your margins, paper size, and page color as you normally would.
7. Before clicking OK, look at the absolute bottom-left corner of the dialogue box and click the button labelled Set as default.
8. Finally, click the OK button.

Your current document will instantly snap back into a traditional page-by-page layout with visible boundaries. Because you clicked “Set as default,” every single new document you create from this point forward will automatically respect these rigid page boundaries, ensuring you never have to manually turn off the infinite scrolling canvas again.