35 Claude Prompts for Google Docs
Claude has no button inside Google Docs, so these 35 prompts work the way the job actually gets done: you paste the doc, the comment threads, or the transcript into Claude, and it returns the draft, the exact find and replace list, or the Apps Script you paste into Extensions.
In short: This page contains 35 copy-paste ready prompts, organized into 5 categories with a description and pro tip for each. The first 5 prompts are free instantly, no signup needed. Hand-curated and tested by the AI Academy team.
Drafting & Outlines
7 promptsOutline From a Brain Dump
1/35<context>[Paste your raw notes, bullets, and half finished sentences for the document.] The reader is [audience] and the doc has to answer [main question].</context> <task>Turn this into a Google Docs outline: one Heading 1, then Heading 2 sections, then Heading 3 subpoints where the content justifies them.</task> <format>Outline only, one line per heading, with the heading level written in front of each line, plus a single line under each H2 naming the evidence that section still needs.</format>
Turns unstructured notes into a heading hierarchy you can paste straight into a doc.
Pro tip: Paste the outline in, then select each line and apply the matching paragraph style. The outline pane on the left fills in immediately and becomes your progress tracker.
First Draft From an Approved Outline
2/35<context>[Paste the approved outline with its heading levels.] Target length is [N] words, the audience is [audience], and the doc will be read [live in a meeting / async before a decision].</context> <task>Write the full first draft, keeping the exact heading structure and adding nothing outside it.</task> <format>Plain text with headings on their own lines, paragraphs of three sentences maximum, and any figure I have not supplied written as [TBD: what you need from me].</format>
Produces a complete first draft that follows an outline reviewers already signed off on.
Pro tip: The [TBD] markers are the point. Ctrl+F for 'TBD' in Docs and you have an instant list of every fact you still owe the reader.
Decision Doc From Meeting Notes
3/35<context>[Paste the raw meeting notes or transcript.] The meeting was about [topic], and the people who were not in the room need to understand what was settled.</context> <task>Write a decision doc: the decision, the context behind it, the options considered, why the others lost, who owns the next steps, and what would make us revisit it.</task> <format>Six short sections with those exact headings. Anything discussed but not decided goes in a final Open Questions list, with the name of whoever raised it.</format>
Converts messy meeting notes into a decision record that still makes sense months later.
Pro tip: Write the Open Questions list while names are still fresh. That list is what stops the same debate resurfacing in six weeks.
Project Brief From a Kickoff Transcript
4/35<context>[Paste the kickoff call transcript or notes.] The project is [name] and the brief goes to [stakeholders].</context> <task>Draft a project brief covering problem, goal, explicit non goals, approach, milestones with the dates that were actually stated, owners, risks, and dependencies.</task> <format>Those headings in that order. For every claim, mark whether it was stated in the transcript or inferred by you, so I only have to verify the inferred ones.</format>
Turns a kickoff conversation into a structured brief with sourced and inferred claims separated.
Pro tip: The stated versus inferred split stops you shipping a brief where half the scope was invented. Check every inferred line with its owner before you share the link.
SOP Draft From Scattered Instructions
5/35<context>[Paste every instruction you have for this process: chat messages, old emails, notes, whatever exists.] The process is [name], it runs [frequency], and it is performed by [role].</context> <task>Write a standard operating procedure a new hire could follow without asking a single question.</task> <format>Numbered steps, one action per step, the tool used in bold at the start of each step, a Prerequisites block at the top and a What Goes Wrong block at the bottom.</format>
Consolidates scattered process knowledge into a numbered SOP a newcomer can run.
Pro tip: One action per step is the rule that makes an SOP usable. If a step contains the word 'and', split it before you publish.
Section Word Budget Plan
6/35<context>My doc is [current length] words and the reader will give it [5 / 10 / 20] minutes. Here is the outline: [paste].</context> <task>Assign a word budget to each section based on how much that section contributes to the decision the reader has to make.</task> <format>A table of section, word budget, and one line justifying the budget. Flag any section whose budget lands under 100 words as a candidate to cut entirely.</format>
Allocates length across sections so the section that matters most is not the shortest one.
Pro tip: Keep the table pinned at the top of the doc while you draft, then delete it before sharing. Select any section and use Tools then Word count to check yourself against it.
Reusable Doc Template With Bracketed Fields
7/35<context>My team writes [doc type] roughly [frequency] and every one comes out different. Here are two recent examples: [paste both].</context> <task>Extract the strongest structure from the two and write a blank reusable template from it.</task> <format>The template with every variable part as a [BRACKETED FIELD], plus one instruction line under each heading saying what belongs there and, just as important, what does not.</format>
Builds a blank team template out of the documents you already write.
Pro tip: Save it in a Drive folder as a view only original and tell the team to use File then Make a copy. Nobody edits the master that way.
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Editing & Rewriting
7 promptsCut the Doc to Length Without Losing Facts
8/35<context>[Paste the full doc.] It is [current] words and has to come in under [target] words. Every number, name, date, and commitment has to survive the cut.</context> <task>Trim it. Remove throat clearing, repeated context, and any sentence that only restates the heading above it.</task> <format>The trimmed doc first, then a list of what you removed grouped by reason, so I can restore anything you judged wrong.</format>
Shortens a document while protecting the facts and showing exactly what was dropped.
Pro tip: Read the removal list before the draft. It usually reveals that two of your sections were making the same point in different words.
Plain Language Rewrite for a Non-Expert Reader
9/35<context>[Paste the doc.] It was written for [original audience] and now has to be read by [new audience, for example the finance team or a customer].</context> <task>Rewrite it so the new audience gets it on one read, without stripping out the substance.</task> <format>Same headings. Replace jargon with plain wording, define any term that has to stay in a parenthesis at first use, and end with a list of every term you kept and why.</format>
Rewrites specialist writing for a different internal or external audience.
Pro tip: The kept-terms list is your glossary. Paste it at the bottom of the doc as an appendix instead of deleting it.
Tone Match to Your Team's Existing Docs
10/35<context>Here are two documents my team wrote that people responded well to: [paste both]. Here is my new draft: [paste].</context> <task>Rewrite my draft so it reads like it came from the same team.</task> <format>The rewritten draft, then a style note listing the specific patterns you matched: sentence length, how we open sections, how we deliver bad news, words we use, words we avoid.</format>
Aligns a new draft with the voice of documents your team already accepts.
Pro tip: Keep the style note. Paste it as context in future prompts and you can skip the sample documents entirely from then on.
Passive Voice and Hedging Sweep
11/35<context>[Paste the doc.] It is a [doc type] where somebody has to be accountable for each action described.</context> <task>Find every passive construction and every hedge such as 'we may want to consider', and rewrite them with a named actor and a direct verb.</task> <format>A table of original sentence, rewrite, and the actor you assigned. Where you cannot tell who the actor is, write UNKNOWN OWNER rather than guessing a name.</format>
Replaces vague passive sentences with named owners and direct verbs.
Pro tip: The UNKNOWN OWNER rows are the real output. Each one is work that nobody in the room has agreed to do.
Executive Summary That Survives a Skim
12/35<context>[Paste the full doc.] The reader is [role] and will read the first screen only before deciding whether to keep going.</context> <task>Write an executive summary that stands completely alone: the ask, the recommendation, the three reasons, the cost, and the main risk.</task> <format>Under 150 words, no bullet longer than two lines, the ask in the first sentence. Then a second version at half that length for a chat message.</format>
Produces a top-of-doc summary plus a chat-sized version of the same message.
Pro tip: Put the summary above the table of contents, not below it. Readers stop at the first thing that looks like a wall of text.
Reverse Outline: What the Doc Actually Says
13/35<context>[Paste the doc.] I think it argues [your intended argument], but I have read it too many times to judge.</context> <task>Ignore my stated intent and reverse outline it: for each section, write the one claim it actually makes and the evidence it actually provides.</task> <format>A numbered list in section order, then a verdict on where the real argument drifts from my intended one and which section is doing the least work.</format>
Shows what your document argues rather than what you meant it to argue.
Pro tip: Run this before the review cycle, not after. Reviewers who spot a structural drift will never bother commenting on your wording.
Consistency Pass on Names, Terms and Capitalization
14/35<context>[Paste the doc.] House style: product names are [list], we write [term] and never [variant], dates use [format], numbers over [threshold] use [convention].</context> <task>Find every inconsistency in terminology, capitalization, product naming, date format, and number format.</task> <format>A find and replace table with three columns: exact current text, exact replacement text, number of occurrences. Do not return a rewritten document.</format>
Generates an exact find and replace list instead of a risky full rewrite.
Pro tip: Docs has find and replace under Edit, with match case and regex options. Working from an exact-text table is faster and far safer than pasting a whole rewritten doc back over your own.
Collaboration & Comments
7 promptsComment Threads to an Action List
15/35<context>[Paste the comment threads, including who wrote what and any replies.] The doc is [name] and I have to close the review by [date].</context> <task>Turn every thread into something I can act on: what is being asked, whether it is a fact fix, an opinion, or a scope change, and what I should do about it.</task> <format>A table of commenter, thread summary, type, recommended action, and whether it can be resolved without a reply. Sort it so the fact fixes come first.</format>
Triages a pile of review comments into a prioritized edit list.
Pro tip: Open the comment history icon at the top right of the doc to copy every thread at once, including the ones already resolved, instead of scrolling the sidebar.
Reply Drafts for Every Open Comment
16/35<context>[Paste the open comments together with the paragraphs they are attached to.] These reviewers are my [peers / manager / client], and I disagree with [which ones].</context> <task>Draft one reply per comment: accept, accept with a modification, or decline with a reason.</task> <format>Under 40 words per reply, no apologies, and for every decline put the reason before the decline so it does not read as a brush off.</format>
Writes short, non-defensive replies to each reviewer comment.
Pro tip: Reply then resolve, never resolve silently. A thread that gets closed with no answer is the fastest way to lose that reviewer next time.
Merge Two Conflicting Versions
17/35<context>Version A: [paste]. Version B: [paste]. They were edited in parallel by different people and both contain changes worth keeping.</context> <task>Produce one merged document, and separate genuine contradictions from places where the two versions merely word the same thing differently.</task> <format>The merged doc first. Then a conflicts list with the passage, what A says, what B says, and which one you kept, so the two authors can settle the real disagreements themselves.</format>
Reconciles two parallel drafts and isolates the disagreements that need a human decision.
Pro tip: Pull both versions from File then Version history, and name the versions before you start merging so you can still find them afterwards.
Suggestion Mode Edit List
18/35<context>[Paste the doc.] I am editing somebody else's document and I want to leave suggestions rather than silent rewrites.</context> <task>Propose your edits as exact replacements instead of returning a rewritten document.</task> <format>A table of exact original text, exact replacement text, and a one line rationale I can paste as the suggestion comment. Keep each original snippet short enough to select in one drag.</format>
Turns a rewrite into discrete suggestions you can apply one at a time.
Pro tip: Switch to Suggesting mode from the pencil icon at the top right before you apply any of these. In Suggesting mode the author keeps the accept or reject decision, which is the whole point.
Reviewer Brief
19/35<context>[Paste the doc or its outline.] The reviewers are [names and roles] and I need their input back by [date].</context> <task>Write the request that goes out with the review, telling each reviewer which sections to read and what kind of feedback I want from them specifically.</task> <format>A short message per reviewer naming their sections, the question they should answer, and what to ignore. Then one line I can paste at the top of the doc stating the review deadline.</format>
Gives each reviewer a scoped job instead of asking everyone to read everything.
Pro tip: Use an @mention with a date in the doc so each reviewer gets an assigned action item in Drive, not just an email notification they can archive.
Vague Feedback to Specific Edits
20/35<context>Feedback received: [paste it, for example 'this feels too long' or 'not sure about the framing']. Here is the doc it refers to: [paste].</context> <task>Translate each vague comment into two or three concrete edits that would satisfy it, and name the passage that probably triggered it.</task> <format>Grouped by comment: your interpretation, the likely trigger passage, the specific edits, and one clarifying question to send back if your interpretation is a guess.</format>
Converts unactionable feedback into specific changes plus the questions worth asking.
Pro tip: Send the clarifying question before doing the edits. Half the time the reviewer meant something you would never have guessed from the comment.
Version Diff Explained in Plain English
21/35<context>Previous version: [paste]. Current version: [paste]. Stakeholders have already read the previous one and will not read the whole thing again.</context> <task>Explain what changed in terms of meaning rather than wording: what was added, what was removed, which commitment moved, and what a reader of the old version would now get wrong.</task> <format>Four short lists with those labels, then a two sentence change note I can send to everyone who read the old version.</format>
Summarizes what materially changed between two versions of a shared document.
Pro tip: Version history shows what changed but never why it matters. Name the new version in Docs and paste the change note at the top so both live together.
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Formatting & Structure
7 promptsHeading Hierarchy Fix
22/35<context>[Paste the doc with its current headings marked by level.] People navigate it from the Docs outline pane and keep getting lost in the middle.</context> <task>Rebuild the heading hierarchy: correct the levels, make the phrasing parallel, and rewrite each heading so it states what the section concludes rather than what topic it covers.</task> <format>A before and after list of every heading with its level, plus a note on any section that has no heading and needs one, or has one and should be merged upward.</format>
Repairs heading levels and rewrites headings so the outline pane reads like a summary.
Pro tip: Apply them with Format then Paragraph styles so the outline pane and the table of contents both update. Bold text at a larger size is not a heading and Docs will not treat it as one.
Wall of Text to Tables and Lists
23/35<context>[Paste the section that reads as one dense block.] It contains [comparisons / sequential steps / criteria / options].</context> <task>Decide what belongs in a table, what belongs in a numbered list, what belongs in bullets, and what has to stay as prose. Then rewrite the section that way.</task> <format>Give tables as tab separated rows I can paste directly, and add one line per element explaining why that format suits that content.</format>
Restructures dense prose into the format each part of it actually needs.
Pro tip: Docs converts tab separated text into a real table on paste, so ask for tabs rather than pipes and skip the manual cell entry entirely.
Table of Contents and Link Plan
24/35<context>[Paste the heading list of a doc that runs to [N] pages.] It is shared as a link and readers jump straight into the middle of it.</context> <task>Plan the navigation: which headings belong in the table of contents, which sections need a direct link people can share, and what each link should be called.</task> <format>A table of heading, include in the table of contents yes or no, suggested link text, and where else in the doc that link should appear inline.</format>
Plans in-document navigation for a long document that gets shared as a link.
Pro tip: Insert then Table of contents builds itself from your heading styles, and right clicking any heading gives you Copy heading link for a URL that lands on that exact section.
Split a Long Doc Into a Linked Set
25/35<context>[Paste the outline of the doc.] It has grown to [N] words and different readers only ever need different parts of it.</context> <task>Propose a split into separate documents with one parent hub doc, based on who reads what and how often each part changes.</task> <format>Per proposed doc: name, owner, contents, audience, update frequency, and which other docs it links to. Then the structure of the hub doc that ties them together.</format>
Breaks an oversized document into a maintainable set with a hub page.
Pro tip: Split on update frequency, not only on topic. The section you rewrite every month should never sit inside the doc you want to leave frozen for a year.
Process Doc to Numbered Checklist
26/35<context>[Paste the process section, currently written as prose.] It is followed by [role], usually under time pressure.</context> <task>Convert it into a checklist someone can tick through while doing the work, with every decision point made explicit.</task> <format>Numbered steps in checklist form, branch points written as If [condition], go to step [n], and a Verify block at the end listing how to confirm the work was done correctly.</format>
Turns narrative process descriptions into a tickable checklist with clear branches.
Pro tip: Format then Bullets and numbering then Checklist gives you real checkboxes, and everyone who makes a copy of the doc gets their own independent tick state.
Accessible Document Pass
27/35<context>[Paste the doc, and describe every image in it: what it shows and why it is there.] It will be shared outside my team.</context> <task>Audit it for accessibility: heading order, descriptive link text instead of 'click here', alt text for each image, table header rows, and any meaning carried by color alone.</task> <format>A findings table of issue, location, and the exact replacement text. Write the alt text for me rather than telling me to write it.</format>
Produces usable alt text and fixes the accessibility problems in a shared document.
Pro tip: Right click an image and choose Alt text to paste each one in. Screen readers announce link text with no surrounding context, which is exactly why 'click here' fails.
Citations, Footnotes and Appendix Order
28/35<context>[Paste the doc and the list of sources with their URLs.] House reference style is [style, or state that there is none].</context> <task>Place each reference properly: what becomes an inline link, what becomes a footnote, what moves to an appendix, and what is not credible enough to cite at all.</task> <format>A table of claim, source, placement decision, and the exact text to insert. Separately, flag every claim in the doc that currently has nothing behind it.</format>
Organizes sources and surfaces the claims that are not backed by anything.
Pro tip: Insert then Footnote, or Ctrl+Alt+F, adds footnotes without breaking your numbering. Fix the unsourced claims first, since those are the rows that get challenged in review.
Apps Script for Docs
7 promptsFind and Replace Across a Whole Drive Folder
29/35<context>I have [N] Google Docs sitting in one Drive folder and need the same replacements applied to all of them: [list the old text and new text pairs]. I have never written Apps Script.</context> <task>Write a Google Apps Script that opens every Doc in a folder and applies the replacements, then tell me exactly where to paste it and how to run it.</task> <format>The full script with comments, the folder ID as a variable at the top, a DRY_RUN flag that only logs what it would change, and numbered run instructions including which permissions it will request.</format>
Generates a script that bulk edits every document in a Drive folder.
Pro tip: Run it with DRY_RUN on first and read the execution log line by line. Script edits across files cannot be undone with Ctrl+Z, and version history is per document.
House Style Formatting Normalizer
30/35<context>Docs come back to me from different people with mixed fonts, sizes, and spacing. House style is [font, size, line spacing, heading sizes, margins].</context> <task>Write an Apps Script bound to a document that applies the house style to body text and to each heading level, without touching tables or images.</task> <format>The full script with one function per style rule so I can comment out the ones I do not want, plus a short list of what it cannot fix and I will have to do by hand.</format>
Creates a script that enforces your formatting standard on the open document.
Pro tip: Open it from Extensions then Apps Script inside the doc itself so it is bound to that document. A bound script needs no file ID and runs against whatever doc it lives in.
Generate One Doc Per Spreadsheet Row
31/35<context>I have a Google Sheet with the columns [list them] and a Google Doc template containing placeholders like {{name}} and {{amount}}. I need one document per row, saved into [folder].</context> <task>Write an Apps Script that copies the template for each row, replaces the placeholders, and names each file from [which columns].</task> <format>Full script with template ID and folder ID as variables, a status written back to the sheet so processed rows are skipped on a re-run, and instructions for launching it from the Sheet.</format>
Builds a document merge that produces one file per spreadsheet row.
Pro tip: The status column is what makes the script safe to re-run. Without it, a run that fails halfway creates a full set of duplicates the second time.
Export Doc Comments to a Sheet
32/35<context>I run document reviews in Google Docs and need the comments tracked outside the doc. The documents involved are [IDs, or say all docs in one folder].</context> <task>Write an Apps Script that uses the Drive API to pull comments and their replies out of those documents and write them into a Google Sheet.</task> <format>Full script, the exact advanced service I must enable and how to enable it, columns for doc name, author, comment, quoted text, resolved status and date, plus what the API cannot retrieve.</format>
Extracts review comments into a spreadsheet you can filter, assign, and archive.
Pro tip: Advanced services are switched on from the Services panel in the Apps Script editor. If the script errors on an unknown identifier, that panel is almost always the reason.
Custom Menu of Team Doc Actions
33/35<context>My team repeats the same actions in every document: [list them, for example insert the standard header, stamp today's date, apply the review checklist, delete empty paragraphs].</context> <task>Write an Apps Script with an onOpen custom menu that exposes each of those actions as its own menu item.</task> <format>Full script with one clearly named function per action, the onOpen menu builder, and an explanation of why the menu only appears after a reload the first time.</format>
Adds a custom Docs menu that runs your team's repeated actions in one click.
Pro tip: The menu only shows for people with edit access who have authorized the script once. Ship it inside a template doc so each teammate authorizes it the first time they make a copy.
Self-Updating Header and Metadata Stamp
34/35<context>Our documents need a consistent block at the top containing [what it should hold, for example doc owner, status, last reviewed date, confidentiality label].</context> <task>Write an Apps Script that inserts that block, or updates it if it is already there, and stamps the last modified date pulled from the file metadata.</task> <format>Full script that locates and updates the existing block instead of duplicating it, the exact block text with placeholders, and a warning about what breaks if somebody edits the block by hand.</format>
Stamps a consistent, self-updating status header on every document.
Pro tip: Have the script find the block by a marker string rather than by position. Position based scripts break silently the moment somebody adds a paragraph above.
Debug an Apps Script Error
35/35<context>Here is my script: [paste the code]. Here is the error and the execution log: [paste both]. It fails [every time / only on large docs / only for other users on the team].</context> <task>Explain what the error actually means, fix the script, and tell me which part was the real cause rather than a symptom.</task> <format>The corrected script, a short root cause explanation, and a list of the quota, timeout, or permission limits that could make this same script fail again later.</format>
Diagnoses Apps Script failures and returns corrected, hardened code.
Pro tip: Copy the whole execution log from the Executions panel, not just the red error line. The entry immediately before the failure usually names the real problem.
Frequently Asked Questions
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