How to Add a Table of Contents in Google Docs
Build a clickable table of contents in Google Docs by styling section titles as headings, inserting it from the Insert menu, and refreshing it after edits.
A table of contents in Google Docs is generated from the document's headings. Mark the section titles as headings first, then insert the table where you want it and refresh it whenever the headings change.
Style your section titles as headings
Click in a section title, then click Format, Paragraph styles, and choose Heading 1 for main sections, Heading 2 for subsections, and Heading 3 for the level below that. The styles dropdown at the left of the toolbar (it reads Normal text by default) does the same thing, as do the shortcuts Ctrl + Alt + 1, 2, or 3 (Mac: Cmd + Option + 1, 2, or 3). Repeat for every title that should appear in the table.
Click where the table should go
Place the cursor on an empty line, usually right after the document title and before the first heading. The table is inserted at the cursor.
Insert the table of contents
Click Insert, hover Table of contents, and pick a style. Plain text lists the headings with page numbers, Dotted adds a dotted leader line between each heading and its page number, and Links shows the headings as blue clickable links with no page numbers. In every style, clicking an entry jumps to that section.
Update it when headings change
The table does not refresh on its own. After you add, rename, or move headings, click anywhere inside the table and click the circular Update table of contents icon that appears beside it. Right-clicking the table and choosing Update table of contents does the same.
Change the style or remove it
Click inside the table and use the small toolbar that appears to switch between the three styles, or open More options from that toolbar to change which heading levels are included and how far each level is indented. To delete the table, right-click it and choose Delete table of contents.
Only headings count. Text that is bold or large but still styled as Normal text will not appear. If an entry is missing, click that title and check that the styles dropdown reads Heading 1, 2, or 3.
In the mobile app. The Google Docs app cannot insert a table of contents. One that was added on the web still works as links on a phone, and the outline (three-dot menu, Document outline) covers navigation in the meantime.