How to Type Arabic in Google Docs

Last updated: June 2026 · Google Docs (web & mobile)

Quick answer: Type your Arabic in the keyboard above, click Copy, paste into your Doc. Then turn on right-to-left: on the Docs home screen open Menu (☰) → Settings → tick “Always show right-to-left controls” → OK, and set the paragraph to right-to-left (toolbar button, or Ctrl + Shift + E). That’s the whole job.

Type Arabic and copy it into Google Docs — no setup

The keyboard at the top of this page lets you write Arabic without installing anything. Click the on-screen letters, use your own keys, or type by sound, add harakat, then tap Copy and paste into your Doc. This is the only method that needs zero system changes, so it’s perfect on a shared, work or school computer. After pasting, set right-to-left (next section).

Turn on right-to-left controls in Google Docs (the real prerequisite)

This is the step most people miss — the right-to-left paragraph button is hidden until you enable it:

• Go to the Google Docs home screen (docs.google.com).
• Open the Menu (☰) top-left → Settings.
• Tick “Always show right-to-left controls” → OK.

Set the Arabic paragraph direction (right-to-left)

• Click in your Arabic paragraph and press the right-to-left direction button in the toolbar.
• Or use the shortcut Ctrl + Shift + E (right-to-left) / Ctrl + Shift + L (left-to-right).

Install a system Arabic keyboard (to type Arabic directly)

• Windows: add Arabic in Settings → Time & language, switch with Windows + Space — see Arabic keyboard for Windows.
• Mac: add Arabic in System Settings → Keyboard, switch with Control + Space — see Arabic keyboard on Mac.
• Chromebook: see Arabic keyboard for Chromebook.

Best Arabic fonts in Google Docs

From the font menu choose More fonts, search Arabic, and add a Naskh font for clean, joined letters: Noto Naskh Arabic, Amiri, Cairo, Scheherazade New or Lateef. A proper Arabic font also fixes most “letters not joining” issues.

Mixing Arabic and English in one document

Set the direction per paragraph: keep Arabic paragraphs right-to-left and English ones left-to-right. Numbers, parentheses and punctuation follow the paragraph direction, so if a bracket or full stop jumps to the wrong side, check the paragraph’s direction rather than retyping it.

Type Arabic in the Google Docs app (Android & iPhone)

• Android: add Arabic to your keyboard (see Android), then in Docs open Format → Paragraph → Paragraph direction and pick right-to-left.
• iPhone / iPad: add the Arabic keyboard in iOS Settings (see iPhone), then use the same Format → Paragraph step.

Voice typing Arabic in Google Docs

On the desktop, open Tools → Voice typing, click the language picker and choose an Arabic variant, then speak. Note: the spoken commands (like “new line”) work in English only, but Arabic dictation itself is supported.

Troubleshooting Arabic in Google Docs

Text is reversed or jumbled

The paragraph direction is left-to-right — press Ctrl + Shift + E or use the right-to-left button.

Letters don’t connect / join

Switch to an Arabic font (Noto Naskh Arabic, Amiri) — Latin-only fonts break the joins.

The paragraph-direction button is missing

Enable right-to-left controls in the Docs home-screen Settings (see above).

No Arabic keyboard installed

Use the keyboard at the top of this page and paste into your Doc.

Also useful

Writing Arabic in Word instead? See how to type Arabic in Word. For the phonetic approach, try english to arabic typing.

Arabic in Google Docs — bilingual and cross-border

Across the Maghreb and the French-speaking diaspora, most documents mix Arabic with French or English. The right-to-left steps above make those bilingual Google Docs render correctly, whether you’re in Rabat, Paris or Montreal.

Official help: Right-to-left text in Docs (Google). See also the Arabic Keyboard hub and how to type Arabic in Word.

Frequently Asked Questions