How to Import Articles from Google Docs to WordPress

How to Easily Import Articles from Google Docs to WordPress in 2023 (Ultimate Guide)

Are you looking for the easiest way to write and collaborate on your WordPress blog posts? Many content creators and website owners prefer drafting articles in Google Docs. It offers a distraction-free writing environment, built-in autosave, version history, and real-time collaboration features.

However, once your post is ready to publish, you need to transfer the content from Google Docs into WordPress. Manually copying and pasting often results in formatting issues that are time-consuming to clean up. Luckily, there are some simple tricks and tools you can use to seamlessly import your Google Docs articles to WordPress.

In this comprehensive guide, we‘ll walk through how to move a blog post from Google Docs to WordPress, step-by-step. You‘ll learn how to use native WordPress features to preserve your formatting, as well as the best plugins to automate the entire process. Let‘s get started!

Benefits of Writing Blog Posts in Google Docs

Before we dive into the importing process, let‘s quickly recap why you may want to write your WordPress posts in Google Docs in the first place:

Distraction-free interface helps you focus on writing
Automatic saving ensures you never lose your work
Revision history lets you track changes and revert to earlier versions
Simultaneous editing allows multiple people to collaborate in real-time
Suggesting mode for leaving edit suggestions and comments
Easy sharing with a link for gathering feedback
Works across devices so you can write anywhere
Export options to download your doc in various formats

While the WordPress block editor has certainly improved the writing experience, many still prefer the simplicity and reliability of composing longer-form content in Google Docs. Thankfully, with the right approach, you can get the best of both worlds — draft in Docs, then import to WordPress for publishing.

How to Manually Import a Google Doc to WordPress

The most basic way to get your content from Google Docs to WordPress is to manually copy and paste the text. Here are the steps:

In Google Docs, select all the content and copy it (Ctrl + A, then Ctrl + C)
In your WordPress dashboard, create a new post
Click into the post editor and paste the content you copied (Ctrl + V)
Add a title, select a category, set a featured imaged, and fill out other post settings as needed
Preview the post to check for any formatting issues
Hit Publish or schedule the post for later

Seems simple enough, right? The problem is, when you copy/paste from Google Docs to WordPress, it often brings over extra HTML and CSS styling that can cause wonky formatting.

For example, you may see irregular line spacing, random font changes, extra span tags, or alignment issues. This happens because Google Docs exports its own HTML when copied, which conflicts with your WordPress theme‘s stylesheet.

To make matters worse, any images in your Google doc won‘t automatically transfer over with copy/paste. You‘ll have to manually download each image, upload it to your WordPress media library, and re-insert them into the appropriate places in your post. Talk about tedious!

Fixing a Messy Copy/Paste with the Block Editor

If you‘re using the WordPress block editor (aka Gutenberg), there are some tricks to help you avoid the dreaded "messy copy and paste" from Google Docs.

After you paste your Google Doc content into a new WordPress post, you‘ll likely see separate content blocks for each paragraph, heading, image, and list item. This makes it easier to change styling and move things around without messing up the surrounding content.

For more control over the pasted formatting, try these tips:

Use the "Paste as text" option to strip out all formatting
Right-click and "Remove block" on any extra block elements like empty paragraphs
Select the text and use the formatting toolbar to re-apply consistent styles
Fix any remaining formatting issues with the "Code editor" for each block

In the rare case you see an "updating failed" error after pasting, you can also try pasting into a separate code editor like Notepad first. Then copy/paste the plain text from there into the WordPress editor.

Clearing Formatting with the Classic Editor

If you‘re still using the Classic WordPress editor, don‘t worry. There‘s a handy "Clear formatting" button (the eraser icon) in the Visual editor toolbar.

After you paste in content from Google Docs, simply select the text and click this button. It will strip out the messy behind-the-scenes code and give you a clean slate to work with. You can then go through and re-apply headings, bold text, and other styles as needed.

The Perils of Copy/Paste for Images and SEO

Even if you get your blog post text imported from Google Docs and tidied up, you still have to deal with the images. Manually transferring images is a huge time drain, especially for longer articles with lots of screenshots or photos.

Plus, when you copy/paste a post from Google Docs, you lose all the SEO optimization you may have already done. Things like meta descriptions, alt text, Open Graph settings, and schema markup will need to be set up again from scratch once the post is in WordPress.

That‘s why relying on the manual import method isn‘t ideal. You‘ll spend more time fixing formatting and adding back images than actually writing!

Let‘s look at some WordPress plugins that can automate the process and make your life much easier.

Top WordPress Plugins for Importing from Google Docs

Wordable

Wordable is a premium plugin that allows you to instantly export Google Docs articles to WordPress (as well as Medium, HubSpot blogs, and other platforms) in a few clicks.

Key features:

• Imports post title, images, headings, links, bolding, and other formatting
• Removes junk code and fixes links and image sizes
• Bulk export options and publish scheduling
• Maintains SEO elements like meta description, slug, and sitemap pings
• Automatically compresses images for faster loading
• Collaboration features to allow your team to use Docs without WordPress access

Setup steps:

Install the WordPress plugin and activate your account
Authenticate and allow Docs access
Select posts to export and set publishing options
Review imported draft and publish or schedule

Pricing: Plans start at $19/month for 5 sites and 1 user. 7-day free trial available.

Mammoth .docx Converter

Mammoth is a free, open-source plugin that converts Microsoft Word documents (.docx files) to clean HTML for pasting into WordPress. You can also use it to convert Google Docs, by first downloading your post as a .docx file.

Steps:

Install and activate the free plugin
In Google Docs, go to File > Download > Microsoft Word (.docx) to save your post
In WordPress, create a new post and scroll down to Mammoth Converter
Choose your downloaded .docx file
Select Visual tab and click Insert into Editor
Add featured image, categories, etc. and publish as usual

The HTML output from Mammoth preserves headings, lists, links, images, and basic formatting. However, advanced styling or layouts may not convert perfectly.

Jetpack with WordPress for Google Docs Add-on

The Jetpack plugin partners with WordPress.com to offer a handy Google Docs add-on for importing posts. It‘s free to use as long as you have a WordPress.com account (which is free to create). One nice perk is the ability to manage multiple WordPress sites from one Google Docs account.

Setup steps:

Install the Jetpack plugin and connect it to WordPress.com
Ensure the JSON API is enabled in Jetpack settings
Install the WordPress for Google Docs add-on and authorize it to access your docs
In Google Docs, go to Add-Ons > WordPress for Google Docs > Open
Select the sites to connect and enter your WordPress login details
To publish, click Save Draft to WordPress

The add-on will automatically transfer your text, images, links, and native Google Docs comments (which convert to WordPress comments). Just review and publish the imported draft as normal.

Tips for Using Google Docs with WordPress

Whichever method you use to import posts from Google Docs, here are some tips to make the process smoother:

• Keep formatting simple in the original Google doc for best results
• Use Docs‘ built-in styles (headings, bullets, etc.) rather than creating your own
• Resize large images before publishing to speed up your pages
• Structure content with descriptive headings for SEO and accessibility
• Avoid copying/pasting Markdown from other sources into Google Docs
• Take advantage of Docs‘ sharing and suggesting features for team collaboration
• If possible, do final edits in WordPress (SEO metadata, categories, etc.) before publishing

Find Your Ideal Workflow

Getting content from Google Docs into WordPress doesn‘t have to be a headache. Choose the method that fits your technical comfort level, budget, and publishing needs.

The manual copy/paste approach works for occasional imports. But if you publish frequently or collaborate with a team, investing in an automated solution like Wordable will likely pay for itself in saved time and frustration.

Regardless of how you import, thoughtful formatting and organization within your original Google Doc will always make things easier. Consistency is key for producing quality content!

We hope this guide has helped you discover an efficient workflow for drafting articles in Google Docs and seamlessly publishing them to your WordPress website. If you have any other tips to share, let us know in the comments below.