19 of the best Google Drive tips and tricks for getting the most out of the service

Dave JohnsonAug 4, 2020, 20:05 IST

Google Drive is easy to use but harder to master.Nopparat Khokthong / Shutterstock.com

To become a Google Drive master, you should know all of Google Drive's best tips and tricks.
Many are given to you right from the start, but some of Google Drive's best features are hidden or require installing a free add-on for your browser.
Below are 19 of the best tips for getting the most out of Google Drive.
You can find more information on the service in our comprehensive user guide to Google Drive.

Since its debut in 2012, Google Drive has evolved from a convenient word processor to, for many people, an essential day-to-day tool.

Whether you use Google Drive for personal data storage or as a major part of your business, there are many ways to get more out of the service and work more efficiently.

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The best Google Drive tips and tricks

Google; Samantha Lee/Business Insider

Find all of Google Drive's shortcuts

Memorize one shortcut to see a list of all the shortcuts you can use throughout Google Drive. Dave Johnson/Business Insider

Convert Microsoft Office and PDF files to Google Drive files

The “Open with” menu command converts all sorts of files to native Google Docs. Dave Johnson/Business Insider

Translate a document

Drive will use Google Translate to translate your document. William Antonelli/Business Insider

Work in Google Doc format for the most storage

Only non-Drive files count toward your storage limit. William Antonelli/Business Insider

Drag and drop from the desktop

You can drag and drop files directly into your browser to upload them to Google Drive. Dave Johnson/Business Insider

Let Google Drive research for you

You can do research straight from a document. William Antonelli/Business Insider

See all the changes in a doc

Google Drive tracks who edits the document, and when. William Antonelli/Business Insider

Don't mess with permissions — just share a document using a link

You can get a link to more easily share files with others. Dave Johnson/Business Insider

Save a screenshot of an entire website, no matter how long it is

There are dozens of extensions you can use to enhance Google Drive. William Antonelli/Business Insider

Color code your folders

Each folder can be a different color. William Antonelli/Business Insider

Convert text in an image into document text

Google Drive's image transcription is generally pretty accurate. William Antonelli/Business Insider

Maintain a running record of your important files

Keep every important version of a file in progress in one place in Google Drive. Dave Johnson/Business Insider

Hide the menu

Going full screen only takes a click. William Antonelli/Business Insider

Use Track Changes like in Word

"Track changes" is called "Suggestions" in Google Docs. William Antonelli/Business Insider

Search for links

Google will search your text and try to find a website that matches it. William Antonelli/Business Insider

Use voice dictation

You can dictate into your headset microphone or webcam mic rather than typing. Dave Johnson/Business Insider

Create a survey

Google Forms is a free survey tool. William Antonelli/Business Insider

Make a new document by clicking a bookmark in your browser

You can open a new Google Drive file with a shortcut. William Antonelli/Business Insider

Try some add-ons

You can install add-ons right from inside a Google Docs file. William Antonelli/Business Insider

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