How to apply and use text styles in Pages in iPadOS 17

How to apply and use text styles in Pages in iPadOS 17

You can apply and use text styles in Pages in iPadOS 17, though the process isn’t as intuitive as it is on the Mac.

To apply a paragraph style:

1. Select one or more paragraphs, or tap anywhere in a paragraph to apply the style to only that paragraph.
2. Tap the paint brush icon.
   If you don’t see text controls, tap Text.
3. Tap the style name below Paragraph Style, then tap a new paragraph style (scroll to see more).
   

How to apply a character style:

Every Pages template includes character styles that consist of formatting attributes such as bold, an underline, or superscript. You can apply character styles to body text and text in text boxes and shapes, but not to text in table cells.

1. Select the words or characters you want to format, then tap the paintbrush icon.
   If you don’t see text controls, tap Text.
2. Tap the three-dot icon above the font size controls.
3. Tap the character style name (it may say None), then tap a character style.
4. Tap outside the controls to close them, or to return to the first page of text controls, tap Back and then tap Text.

How to create or modify a paragraph style:

To add a new style, you first modify the text of a paragraph in your document to look the way you want, then create the new style based on that text.

1. Select the text where you want to create a new style, or tap in text that uses the style you want to change.
2. Tap  the paint brush icon and change the text appearance (font, font size, color, and so on) however you want.
   An asterisk and sometimes an Update button appear next to the paragraph or character style name to indicate that the style has been modified.
3. Do one of the following:
   • Create a new paragraph style: Tap the style name (but not the Update button), tap Edit at the top right of the controls, then tap + at the top left of the controls. The new style is selected and appears with a temporary name (you can type a new name for it). Any text that uses the original style isn’t changed.
   • Apply the changes to the style and keep the same name: Tap Update next to the style name. Any text that uses this style is updated with the changes.
   • Revert changes to a paragraph style: Tap the style name (but not the Update button), then tap the style name in the Paragraph Style menu (but not the Update button). The Update button is removed and the style is reverted to its original format.

If you don’t like the changes you made, you can close the formatting controls, then tap the reverse arrow icon multiple times to step back through your changes and reverse them.

How to create a character style:

You can create your own character styles in body text and text in text boxes and shapes, but not in table cells.

1. Select the text you want to format, then tap the paint brush icon.
2. Use the text controls to change the text appearance, then (if necessary), tap Text to return to the font controls.
3. Tap the three-dot icon above the font size controls.
4. Under Character Style, tap None*.
   An asterisk appears next to a style name when the selected text has a formatting change.
5. Tap Edit in the top-right corner of the controls, then tap the “+” icon in the top-left corner.
   The new style is selected in the menu and appears with a temporary name.
6. Type a name for the new style, then tap Done at the top of the controls.
7. Tap the document to close the Format controls.

How to modify a character style:

You can modify a character style so that all text that uses the character style is automatically updated to match, or create a new style based on an existing style.

1. Select the text that uses the style you want to change.
   Note: If you want to modify a character style that isn’t being used yet in your document, first select some text and apply the style to it (see the task above). Then select that text and continue with the steps below.
   
2. Tap the paintbrush icon.
   The character style being used appears below Text Color in the controls.
3. Use the text controls to change the text appearance.
   An asterisk appears next to the character style name to show that the text has been modified from its original formatting.
4. Apply the changes to the style and keep the same name: Tap Update next to the style name. Any text that uses this style is updated with the changes.
   • Create a new style with a new name: Tap Edit in the top-right corner of the controls, then tap  the “+” icon in the top-left corner. Type a name for the new style. Only the currently selected text uses this style until you apply it to other text.
   • Revert changes to a character style: Swipe left on the style name (you see Clear Overrides on the right). The formatting changes for the selected text are removed and the formatting of the original character style is retained.
   • Tap Done in the top-right corner of the controls, then tap the document to close the Format controls.

How to refine a style:

1. Select the text you modified, then tap the paintbrush icon.
2. Tap the style name that appears (it doesn’t have to be the style you want to redefine).
3. Swipe left on the style you want to modify, then tap Redefine.
   The name of the style doesn’t change.

How to delete a style:

1. Tap in any text, then tap the paintbrush icon.
2. Tap the three-dot icon above the font size controls.
   Alternatively, if a character style name appears below Text Color, you can tap the character style name.
3. Tap Edit in the top-right corner of the controls.
4. Tap the red delete button to the left of the style you want to delete, then tap the Delete button that appears on the right.
5. If the style was applied to text in the document, select a replacement style for the text that uses it, then tap Done.
6. Tap the page to close the controls.

(This how-to is based on my experiences and info on Apple’s support pages — where the images sometimes come from.)