Use Find and Replace to swap one word for another across your whole document

Google Docs has a Find and Replace tool built into the menu that finds every instance of a word and swaps it for something else in seconds. You open it with Ctrl+H on Windows or Command+H on Mac, type the word you want to remove and the word you want instead, then choose whether to replace one instance or all of them at once.

This is faster and more reliable than scrolling through and changing each one by hand, especially in longer documents where you might miss some. The tool also lets you match whole words only (so searching for "read" won't change "reading"), match capitalization exactly, or search using patterns if you need something more precise.

Key Takeaways

  • Open Find and Replace with Ctrl+H (Windows) or Command+H (Mac), or go to Edit menu and select Find and Replace.
  • Type the word you want to find in the first box and the replacement word in the second box, then click Replace All to change every instance at once.
  • Use "Match case" if you only want to replace words with the exact same capitalization, and "Match entire cell contents" to avoid changing words that contain your search term.
  • Click Replace instead of Replace All if you want to review each change before it happens, which is useful when the word you are searching for might mean different things in different places.

Opening Find and Replace in Google Docs

The fastest way is the keyboard shortcut. Press Ctrl+H if you are on Windows, or Command+H if you are on a Mac. A box will pop up on the right side of your screen with two text fields — one for the word you want to find and one for the replacement.

If you prefer using the menu, click Edit at the top of the document, then scroll down and click Find and Replace. This opens the same box. Either way takes you to the same place; use whichever feels natural to you.

Entering your search term and replacement

In the top field labeled "Find," type the word or phrase you want to change. In the field below it labeled "Replace with," type what you want it to become. You do not need to include quotation marks or anything else — just the text itself.

For example, if your document says "colour" throughout and you want to change it to "color," you would type "colour" in the Find field and "color" in the Replace with field. Google Docs will start highlighting every match in your document as you type, so you can see right away whether you are searching for the right thing.

Replacing one instance or all at once

Once you have entered both words, you have two choices. Click the Replace button (the single arrow icon) to change just the first instance, then decide whether to replace the next one. This is useful when the word you are searching for might mean something different in different parts of your document — for instance, if you are searching for "bank" and sometimes it means a financial institution and sometimes it means the side of a river.

Click Replace All (the double arrow icon) to change every instance in the document at once. Google Docs will tell you how many replacements it made. This is the faster choice when you are certain the word means the same thing everywhere.

Using Match Case and other options

Below the two text fields, you will see checkboxes for additional options. Match case means Google Docs will only replace words that have the exact same capitalization as what you typed. If you search for "Hello" with Match case on, it will not change "hello" or "HELLO." Turn this on when capitalization matters — for instance, if you are changing a proper noun and do not want to accidentally change a common word that happens to be spelled the same way.

Match entire cell contents (sometimes labeled "Whole words only" depending on your version) means the search term must stand alone as its own word. Without this option, searching for "read" will change "read," "reading," "reader," and "already." With it on, only the word "read" by itself gets replaced. This prevents accidental changes to words that contain your search term as part of a longer word.

Undoing a replacement if something went wrong

If you click Replace All and realize the replacement was not what you wanted, press Ctrl+Z (Windows) or Command+Z (Mac) when ready to undo. Google Docs will reverse the entire replacement operation in one step, putting all the original words back. This works even if you closed the Find and Replace box.

This is why clicking Replace one at a time is sometimes the safer choice when you are not completely sure — you can stop as soon as you see something that does not look right, rather than having to undo dozens of changes. There is no penalty for being cautious.

Searching for phrases and special characters

Find and Replace works with phrases, not just single words. You can search for "New York" and replace it with "New York City," or search for "the the" (a common typo) and replace it with "the." Just type the whole phrase in both fields the same way you would type a single word.

If you need to search for a punctuation mark or special character, type it exactly as it appears. For instance, you could search for "—" (an em dash) and replace it with "–" (an en dash), or search for " " (two spaces) and replace with " " (one space) to clean up extra spacing. The search works with whatever you type.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I search for part of a word?

Yes. If you search for "ing" without turning on "Match entire cell contents," Google Docs will find and replace "ing" wherever it appears — at the end of words like "running," in the middle of words like "finger," or anywhere else. Turn on "Match entire cell contents" if you only want to replace the word "ing" by itself.

What if I want to replace something with nothing?

Leave the "Replace with" field empty and click Replace All. Google Docs will delete every instance of the search term. This is useful for removing repeated words, extra spaces, or unwanted characters throughout your document.

Does Find and Replace work in comments or suggestions?

No. Find and Replace only changes the text in the main document body. Comments, suggestions, and tracked changes are not affected. If you need to change text in comments, you have to edit them individually.

Can I search for line breaks or paragraph marks?

Google Docs does not support searching for line breaks or paragraph marks the way some other programs do. If you need to remove extra blank lines, the easiest method is to select them manually and delete them, or use Find and Replace to search for repeated spaces or characters instead.

Will Find and Replace work if I have the document shared with other people?

Yes. Find and Replace works on shared documents, and the changes show up for everyone viewing the document. If you have Suggestion mode turned on, the replacements will appear as suggestions that you or another editor can accept or reject rather than making changes directly.