The Intrusive Formatting Panel
When you are formatting a complex document in Google Docs, you will likely use tables to organize data. If you right-click inside a table and select “Table properties,” Docs opens a large sidebar on the right side of your screen. This panel allows you to precisely adjust column widths, row heights, cell background colors, and border thicknesses.
While this granular control is necessary during the initial creation of a table, the sidebar is highly intrusive. Because it docks to the right side of the window, it forces your actual document canvas to shrink and shift to the left. If you are working on a small laptop screen, this horizontal compression makes it very difficult to actually see the table you are trying to edit. Once you have finished adjusting your cell colors and border widths, you need to close the sidebar to restore your writing space.
How to Close the Table Properties Sidebar
You can easily dismiss the formatting panel.
- If the Table properties sidebar is currently open on the right side of your screen, look at the very top right corner of that specific panel.
- You will see a small X icon next to the “Table properties” title.
- Click the X.
The sidebar will instantly slide away, and your document canvas will expand back to its full width. You can now continue typing your data into the table without the screen being horizontally squashed. If you need to make further adjustments later, simply right-click the table again.