How to Make a Hanging Indent in Google Docs
Indent every line except the first in Google Docs using Format, Align & indent, Indentation options, Hanging, or the ruler markers, for reference lists.
A hanging indent keeps the first line of a paragraph at the left margin and pushes every following line in, usually by half an inch. Reference lists in APA, MLA, and Chicago style all use it, and Google Docs has a dedicated setting for it.
Select the paragraphs
Click and drag across the entries you want to format. For a single entry, clicking anywhere inside it is enough because the indent applies to the whole paragraph. Each reference must be its own paragraph, ending with Enter rather than Shift + Enter.
Open Indentation options
Click Format, hover Align & indent, then click Indentation options.
Choose Hanging
In the dialog, open the Special indent dropdown and pick Hanging. The box next to it fills with 0.5, meaning half an inch. Change the number if your style guide asks for something else.
Click Apply
Click Apply. The first line of each selected paragraph stays put and the remaining lines shift right by the amount you set.
Or drag the markers on the ruler
If the ruler is hidden, click View, Show ruler. With the paragraphs selected, look at the left end of the ruler for two blue markers stacked together: a small rectangle on top (first line indent) and a triangle below it (left indent). Drag the triangle right to the 0.5 mark; the rectangle moves with it. Then drag the rectangle alone back to the left margin. The result is the same hanging indent.
To remove it. Select the paragraphs, open Indentation options again, and set Special indent to None. Pressing Ctrl + [ (Mac: Cmd + [) only reduces the left indent and does not undo the hanging part.
In the mobile app. The Google Docs apps for Android and iOS have no hanging indent setting. Format the references on the web; the indent is kept when you open the document on a phone.