How to Download Google Docs

This article explains how to download Google Docs documents from the web to your computer. Instructions apply to Windows and Mac.

How to Download Google Files in All Supported Formats

To download Google files, open the Google Drive account that has the document you want to download, and then follow these steps:

1. Open the document that you want to download. Before you download make sure the document looks exactly the way you want it to.

2. Select File (it's directly under the title of your document in the upper left).

3. Hover over Download as until another menu appears. This menu will have the different available formats you can download it in. Remember that not all programs are compatible with all file types.

4. Choose the file type that you want to download your file as. The file will save to the location on your computer that you've previously set up. If you haven't set a specific location, you can generally find downloads in your Download folder or on your desktop.

How to Download Multiple Google Files at Once

In some cases, you may want to download more than one document at a time. There may also be videos or photos that you want to download all at the same time. In those circumstances, there is a second method for downloading files to your computer.

1. Open up the Google Drive account that has the files you want to save.

2. Choose the file you want to download. If you want to download multiple items, you'll want to right click. Mac users will need to hold down the command key while selecting multiple files.

3. Select the overflow icon (it looks like three vertical dots and is next the trash icon in the upper right corner) This will open a drop down menu.

4. Select download on the drop down menu and all of the files you selected will be downloaded to your device. Just keep in mind that using this method gives you less control over the file types that your downloads are saved as.

Google Drive allows you to store documents of all sizes and shapes which is great because you can access them from wherever you happen to be. When it comes time to download the files you've saved to Google Docs, it's fairly simple and we'll explore the two different methods you can take advantage of.

The first method is the one that gives you the most control over how the file you are downloading is saved. This is particularly important if you are hoping to download a document to use it with a specific program. Google Docs can be saved in one of seven different formats including lesser used format like .epub used for Ebooks.