2 Best Ways to Create Collages in Google Docs

Many people see Google Docs as a tool for creating and editing documents. However, it’s more than that. You can also insert images and perform basic image editing tasks in Google Docs. You can even create photo collages in it. In this post, we will share two ways to create collages in Google Docs.

The beauty of adding collages to Google Docs is that, first, it saves space, and second, collages are easy to move compared to individual images. You need to move or edit a single image, i.e. a collage rather than multiple images.

Let’s check out two methods to create a collage in Google Docs.

Method 1: Create Collage in Google Docs Using Google Drawings

Google Docs does not offer a direct way to create a collage. To create a collage for Google Docs, you’ll need the help of Google Drawings. Do not worry. You don’t even have to leave the Google Docs page. Google Drawings can be easily accessed from any Google Docs document.

Note: This method only works on desktop.

Let’s check the steps in detail.

Stage 1: Open the Google Docs document you want to collage

Visit Google Docs

Step 2: Click the Add option in the top menu bar. Select Drawing from it and then New.

Stage 3: The drawing window will open. Click the Picture icon to add your first picture for the collage.

Step 4: Select the source where you want to add your image. You can upload from your computer using a URL, Google albums, and Google Drive. You can even search directly on the web using the search option. Click the picture to select. Then click the Select button at the bottom.

Step 5: The picture will be added to the Drawing template. Repeat steps 3 and 4 to add as many images as you want. Don’t worry if the images overlap each other.

Step 6: After adding all the pictures, you need to edit and edit them. Here are some editing tips for creating a beautiful collage in Google Docs.

Move Picture

When you add images, they can appear above each other. Just select the image you want to move and drag it to a new location.

Resize Pictures

To resize an image, first select the image. A blue border with small boxes will appear in the image. Change the size of the image using any of the four boxes on the four sides. You can also use the boxes in the middle of the box, but this will not preserve the width-height ratio of your image.

Rotate Image

Select your image and hover your mouse over the circular portion of the blue box. When the cursor turns into a plus (+) sign, use your mouse to rotate the image in the direction you want.

Fly: You can also right-click the image and select Rotate from the menu.

Reorder Pictures

Sometimes you may want to move an image to another image or move it back. For such cases, right-click the image and select Sort. Select the desired image order from the menu.

Fly: Learn how to overlay an image or text over another image in Google Docs.

Apply Border Color, Size, and Style

If you want, you can apply border colors to your collage pictures separately. To do this, select the image and click the Border color icon in the menu bar. Choose the color you want. To change the border size and style, click the icons next to the Border icon and choose the width and style of your border.

Fly: Learn how to set the transparency of an image in Google Drawings.

crop image

If your image has extra space, you can remove it. So, right-click on the image and choose Crop from the menu. A black box will appear around the image with a few slightly darker lines on the edge and in the center of the border. Using them, drag the image inward and press Enter to crop it as needed.

Fly: You can also enable Crop from the top menu bar.

Crop Image in Shape

In addition to regularly cropping a picture, you can also crop it to a shape. Select the picture for it. Then click on the little arrow icon next to the Crop icon in the top bar. Choose the shape you want for your image.

To rearrange the picture in the figure, double-click and drag the picture.

add text

You can also add text to your collage. For that, click on the Text icon in the top bar to activate the text mode. Then draw a typing box using your mouse and start typing in it. You can change the font style, color, etc. Select the text to change.

Fly: See our guide on how to change the background of your collage in Google Docs.

Step 7: Once your collage is ready, click the Save & Close button at the top to add it to your Google Docs document. After adding your collage to the document, you can edit it at any time.

If you want to download your collage and use it outside of Google Docs, click Actions and choose Download > PNG/JPG.

Step 8: Once added to Google Docs, the collage will act as a single image. You can perform more editing tasks on it as you would for any normal image. You can add borders, resize, move, crop, etc. If you want to edit your collage, click the collage and hit the Edit button. You will be taken to the Drawing screen, where you can edit as shown above.

This is how you can create a collage in Google Docs.

Method 2: Using Google Photos

If you don’t like the method above or if your photos are available in Google Photos, you can create a collage in Google Photos and then add it to Google Docs. We covered the steps to create a photo collage in Google Photos on mobile and PC in a separate post. Check it out.

You can use this method on both mobile and PC. On PC, after creating a collage using Google Photos, click the Insert option in the top bar of the Google Docs document and select Picture and then Photos.

Your images found in Google Photos will appear. Click the collage you want to add to Google Docs.

The collage will be added to your document.

On mobile, first download the collage created in Google Photos to your device using the Save to device button. Then launch the Google Docs app and open your document where you want to insert the collage. Tap the Add (+) icon and select Image. Go to the collage you downloaded from Google Photos to your phone.

Use Google Docs Creatively

Google Docs offers a variety of other interesting features to customize your documents. For example, you can even add a watermark to your collage or any other image. Similarly, you can even sign your Google Docs documents without any third-party tools.

Next: Did you know that you can download any image from Google Docs to your mobile phone or computer? Check how to do it from the next link.