Google Workspace Changes

More control over accessibility preferences in Google Docs

Improving the ability to adjust your accessibility preferences for Docs separately. Rather than having the same accessibility settings apply across these products, you’re now able to set preferences for each product individually. We expect this change to make it easier to ensure accessibility settings are personalized to best meet each user’s needs.

The new emoji reactions feature provides a less formal alternative to comments to express your opinions about document content.

Giving and receiving feedback is a key collaborative workflow in Google Docs. The new emoji reactions feature provides a less formal alternative to comments to express your opinions about document content.

Improved announcements for braille comments and highlights in Google Docs

Improved how comments and highlighted text are announced with braille support enabled in Google Docs. This change makes it easier for users of assistive technology, including screen readers and refreshable braille displays, to interact with comments in documents and identify text with background colors.

You can now add a text watermark to your documents in Google Docs.

You can now add a text watermark to your documents in Google Docs. Additionally, when working with Microsoft Word documents, text watermarks will be preserved when importing or exporting your files.

Add or import text watermarks in Google Docs.

Google Docs now allows users to add text watermarks that repeat on every page, which is useful for marking documents as 'Confidential' or 'Draft'. Furthermore, text watermarks are preserved when importing or exporting Microsoft Word documents.

You can mark a paragraph to always begin on a new page with the new “Add page break before” option in Google Docs on mobile.

You can mark a paragraph to always begin on a new page with the new “Add page break before” option in Google Docs. This is particularly useful if you want certain paragraph styles to always create a new page such as titles, subtitles, or headings.

Add a page break before paragraphs in Google Docs on mobile.

Google Docs for Android and iOS now supports the 'Add page break before' option for paragraphs, allowing users to ensure specific styles like titles or headings always start on a new page. This update also enables Google Docs to retain this formatting when importing or exporting Microsoft Word and other third-party documents.

New ways to customize tables in Google Docs, including pinned headers, row split prevention, easier arrangement, sorting, and a properties sidebar.

Google Docs is introducing several table customization features to improve data presentation. Users can now pin header rows to repeat across pages, prevent rows from splitting across page breaks, drag and drop rows and columns for easier arrangement, sort table rows to organize data, and use a new sidebar to manage table properties in real time.

Request and review formal document approvals in Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides.

Google is rolling out a feature that allows users to request and review formal approvals on Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides. Approvers can approve, reject, add comments, or edit documents within the secure Google Workspace environment. To maintain document integrity, files are locked once all reviewers have provided their approval. If any edits are made during the approval process, all reviewers are notified and must re-approve the latest version of the file.

New search and automated entry function for citations in Google Docs.

Google Docs has introduced a new feature that allows users to search for books and online sources to automatically populate citation attributes. This automation is designed to speed up the source creation process, ensure correct formatting, and reduce manual errors when managing citations within documents.

Introduction of a universal @ menu in Google Docs for easy insertion of smart chips, tables, images, and more.

Google Docs has introduced a universal insertion menu triggered by typing '@'. This menu allows users to quickly add smart chips to connect people, content, and events, as well as other content elements and formats like tables and images, directly into their documents to streamline the collaboration process.

Comment size increasing in Google Docs

Increased the comment width to a maximum of 50 characters, a +43% increase in width. Comment width will intelligently scale based on your browser window to maximize the use of available screen space.

Add image watermarks directly into Google Docs.

Google Docs now allows users to insert image watermarks that repeat behind the text on every page of a document, which is ideal for company logos and branding. These watermarks are also preserved when importing or exporting documents from Microsoft Word.

View embedded Microsoft Office files in Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides

Users can now view embedded Microsoft Office files when working with Office files in Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides. This feature allows users to preview embedded files, copy them directly to Google Drive, or download them, providing a more seamless experience when accessing embedded content within Office documents.

Smart Reply is now available for comments in Google Docs.

Google Docs has introduced Smart Reply for comment threads in English, providing users with suggested relevant responses to save time. This feature complements Smart Compose and spelling autocorrect, allowing users to either select a suggested reply or write their own. It is enabled by default but can be turned off via Tools > Preferences.