How to Stop Google Docs from Automatically Starting a New Page

The Premature Break

Google Docs is designed to simulate physical sheets of paper. As you type and reach the bottom margin of the digital “page,” Docs automatically inserts a hidden page break and jumps your cursor to the top of a brand-new page. While this is necessary for printing, it is incredibly annoying if you are writing a script, a massive table of data, or a blog post meant exclusively for the web. The automatic visual break disrupts the flow of your writing, adding unnecessary whitespace and forcing you to scroll past a massive gap just to read the next sentence.

Switching to Pageless Mode

To create a continuous, uninterrupted writing canvas and stop Google Docs from automatically starting a new page when you reach the bottom margin, you must switch the document format.

Google recently introduced a feature specifically for web-first writing. Open your Google Doc. Navigate to the top menu bar and click on File. Scroll down near the bottom of the drop-down menu and click on Page setup. A dialogue box will appear with two distinct tabs at the top: “Pages” and “Pageless.” Click on the Pageless tab. Click the blue OK button. Your document will instantly transform. All page breaks, headers, footers, and margins will vanish, leaving you with a single, infinitely scrolling canvas that only expands downwards as you type, completely eliminating the concept of a “new page.”

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