How to Format a Table of Contents in Google Docs

A table of contents is an essential part of long documents to help readers navigate and quickly find information.

Fortunately, Google Docs makes it easy to create and format a table of contents. This article will show you step-by-step how to add a basic table of contents as well as customize the look.

Why Use a Table of Contents

Here are some of the key reasons you should include a table of contents in your long Google Docs:

Navigation aid – Allows readers to quickly jump to sections of interest
Document structure – Provides an outline of your document’s structure at a glance
Professionalism – Makes your document look polished and professionally edited

Referencing – Useful for citing sections of your document

In short, a table of contents improves readability and accessibility for your readers.

Creating a Basic Table of Contents

Creating a basic table of contents in Google Docs is straightforward:

Add headings – Use the pre-formatted Heading 1, Heading 2 styles for sections you want to include. Skip this step if headings already added.
Insert table of contents – Go to Insert > Table of contents and pick a format.

That’s it! Google Docs will automatically generate a table of contents based on your headings.

However, you can customize the look further.

Customizing the Look

Follow these steps to format your table of contents:

Adjust heading levels shown

By default, the table of contents shows all heading levels. To adjust:

Click the Table of contents dropdown
Select Customize
Check/uncheck boxes to show/hide heading levels

For example, you may only want Heading 1 and Heading 2 to appear.

Change format or style

To update the look of the table of contents text:

Select the entire table of contents

Open the Format menu
Pick formatting options like font, size, color etc

You can also create a Table of contents style from the Styles menu to save settings.

Add leader dots

Small leader dots between the headings and page numbers improve readability. To add:

Select the table and open the Format menu
Go to Paragraph styles > Dots

Right align page numbers

Having page numbers right aligned looks cleaner. To change alignment:

Select the table and open the Format menu
Go to Align > Right

Update page numbers

If headings shift to different pages:

Click inside the table and select Update page numbers option

This will refresh the page numbers to match the current document structure.

Troubleshooting Issues

Here are solutions for common issues:

Headings not appearing – Confirm headings formatted properly with styles like Heading 1, Heading 2 etc.
Page numbers incorrect – Try updating page numbers as shown above