Google Docs is known as a comprehensive text editor, but it also offers some basic built-in drawing tools that allow users to create basic designs and add special touches to their documents.
Note: The Google Docs drawing feature is not available in the iOS or Android Google Docs app. You can view drawings in the app, but you must use a desktop browser to create drawings.
How to draw in Google Docs
Accessing drawing features in Google Docs is not as obvious as Microsoft PowerPoint, which has all the drawing tools in the ribbon. To access the drawing tools in Google Doc, on the menu bar[挿入]Click on the drop-down menu[描画]Hover over the submenu[新規]Click.
Select to display the drawing window. The drawing tools are located on the menu bar and, from left to right, include:
- action: Displays a menu of actions such as downloading images, viewing version history, copying, pasting, rotating images, inserting word art, and more.
- Undo (curved left arrow): Undo the last operation.
- Redo (curved right arrow): Redo the last undone action.
- Zoom (magnifying glass): Enlarge or reduce the drawing. You can insert a ruler or guideline from the dropdown menu.
- Select (cursor): Select a shape in the drawing.
- line (diagonal line): Select from several different linetypes to draw.
- Shape (square with a circle on top of it): You can insert several ready-made shapes such as arrows, callouts, equation symbols, etc.
- Textbox (box with “T” inside): Insert a text box to add text to your drawing.
- Image (box with mountains): Insert an image from your computer, Google Drive, or search the internet for an image.
The process of using drawing tools is almost the same. Select the tool you want to use and click and drag your cursor across the drawing board to create a shape or image. The following video demonstrates how to use the line, shape, and text tools, and how to rotate shapes from the action tools.
If you insert an image, you must choose where to get the image. Google Docs can use images from your local machine.
From Google Drive:
Or from the built-in Google search functionality:
The selected photo appears on the drawing board.
Depending on what you want to insert into your drawing, different formatting tools will appear. For example, when you insert a text box, you’ll see several text formatting tools that let you bold, italicize, underline, change the font or resize, and more.
Similarly, by adding shapes and lines, you can adjust the color, thickness, dashed lines, and express the start and end points of the lines. To draw a line or shape, select it from the menu bar and click and drag the cursor on the drawing screen.
Once you’ve created your drawing, you can insert it into your Google Docs document. To do this, click the blue “Save and Close” button in the upper right corner of the drawing screen.
The drawing will appear at the cursor position in the Google Docs document.
That’s all. Drawing tools are pretty basic in Google Docs. If you need a tool that Docs doesn’t offer, consider using a Microsoft app like Word or OneNote instead.
Related: How to draw in Microsoft OneNote