How to Use the Preferences Tool in Google Docs to Create Custom Text Shortcuts

The Annoyance of Repetitive Typing

If you are a lawyer, a medical professional, or a customer service representative, you likely type the exact same long phrases dozens of times a day. Typing “Pursuant to the terms and conditions outlined in Section 4” or “Thank you for reaching out to customer support, my name is…” over and over again is incredibly tedious and drastically reduces your typing speed.

While some professionals buy expensive third-party macro software to automate their typing, you do not actually need extra software if you do your writing in Google Workspace. Google Docs includes a hidden Preferences Tool that acts as a native text-expansion engine.

By using this tool, you can create custom, lightning-fast keyboard shortcuts that instantly expand into massive paragraphs of text the moment you press the Spacebar.

Step 1: Accessing the Preferences Menu

You can configure your custom shortcuts from inside any active document. Once created, these shortcuts will follow your Google account and work flawlessly across every single Google Doc you create in the future.

1. Open a Google Doc.
2. In the top menu bar, click Tools.
3. Select Preferences from the drop-down menu.

Step 2: Creating a Custom Shortcut

When the Preferences window opens, click the Substitutions tab at the top. You will see a long list of default shortcuts that Google Docs already uses (for example, converting (c) into a copyright symbol ©).

To create your own text-expansion macro, you will use the two blank boxes at the very top of the list: Replace and With.

1. In the Replace box, type a short, memorable trigger word. Crucial Tip: Never use a real English word (like “address”) as a trigger, because it will expand every time you try to use the word normally in a sentence. Instead, use a prefix like a slash or an asterisk (e.g., /address or .sig).
2. In the With box, paste the massive block of text you want the shortcut to generate (e.g., your full corporate mailing address, department name, and zip code).
3. Click the blue OK button at the bottom of the window to save the macro.

Step 3: Triggering the Shortcut

Now, return to your document and test the automation.

Type your exact trigger word (/address) and simply press the Spacebar. Google Docs will instantly delete the trigger word and replace it with the massive block of text you pasted into the “With” box.

This happens natively, with zero lag, and requires absolutely no third-party Chrome extensions.

Step 4: Fixing Accidental Auto-Corrections

The Preferences tool is also the exact location where you can disable annoying auto-formatting behaviors that Google Docs forces upon you.

If you are a programmer writing code snippets in Google Docs, you might be furious that Google constantly capitalizes the first letter of your code strings, or automatically converts straight quotes (") into curly, smart quotes (”) which instantly breaks your code.

To stop this:

1. Go back to Tools > Preferences.
2. Click the General tab.
3. Uncheck the box for Automatically capitalize words.
4. Uncheck the box for Use smart quotes.

By mastering the Preferences tool, you can force Google Docs to type exactly how you want it to, saving you hours of repetitive keystrokes every single week.