How to Delete a Column in Google Docs

Written by Tijana Google Workplace / Docs

- 3 min read
Key Takeaways

To create a new table, click on Format > Columns > Add the desired number of columns; or to delete a column, click on Format > Table > Delete column.

Even though Google Docs is mainly used to write long paragraphs and text, you're surely familiar with the fact that you can also add columns to the document in Google Docs.

You can insert a table to display data in a tabular, ordered format in a Google Docs document.

Using a table is a fantastic method to display several fields of related data, and makes it simpler to understand a list of goods and their prices, for instance.

It could be vital to learn how to delete a column in Google Docs if you are working with a table that has more columns than you need or if you have a document with two or three columns and want to have one less.

Follow the steps listed below to learn how to delete a column from a Google Docs document.

Related: How to Insert Checkbox In Google Docs That Users Can Check.

How to Delete a Column from a Google Docs Document

Note: The steps in this article will only work for the Desktop version of Google Docs. On Android devices and iOS devices, the step-by-step process is different.

Method 1: Creating a new set of columns

  1. Open the document from Google Docs where you need to add/change columns.
  2. From the top menu, click on 'Format'.
  3. A drop-down menu will show up; click on 'Columns'.
  4. Select the number of columns you want to have in your Google document.

Method 2: Editing an existing column

Google Docs has a feature that allows editing, removing columns, or modifying, similarly to Microsoft Word. Follow these steps to remove a column from a table in Google Docs:

  1. Open the Google Docs document where you have extra columns.
  2. Click and select a cell from the column you want to delete.
  3. Right-click on the cell, and from the menu, click on the 'Delete column' option.

Note: Any data from the column will be deleted from the Google Docs document, as well as from your Google Drive. To undo the deletion of the column, click on the 'Undo' button in the top-left corner, or use the Ctrl + Z keyboard shortcut for Windows, and Cmd + Z for Mac.

You might also like: How to Download Image From Google Doc.

Conclusion

Adding and removing tables in Google Docs is an extremely helpful tool, and helps organize your data better. This article shows the step-by-step process of both creating new, custom tables and columns, as well as removing a column from an already-made table.

To create a new table, click on Format > Columns > Add the desired number of columns; or to delete a column, click on Format > Table > Delete column.

If you liked this article, check out: How to Print Double-Sided on Google Docs and How to Group Images in Google Docs.