To stop writing suggestions in Google Docs on a computer, open Tools > Preferences, clear Show Smart Compose suggestions and, if needed, Show Smart Reply suggestions, then click OK. These are separate controls.
The suggestions that appear after you type @ are different: they are the smart-chip insertion menu. Google’s documented computer instructions explain how that menu works but do not document a general switch to disable it. You can dismiss it with an unofficial keyboard workaround, but you cannot treat that workaround as a supported preference.
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Identify which Google Docs prompt you want to stop
“Smart suggestions” can refer to three different behaviors. Choosing the wrong setting is the most common reason suggestions continue to appear.
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Outbyte PC Repair FREERepair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Outbyte Driver Updater FREEScan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →| Feature | What you see | Where it appears | Documented control |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smart Compose | Inline words or phrases offered as you type | Main document editing area and comments | Yes. Tools > Preferences > Show Smart Compose suggestions |
| Smart Reply | Suggested short replies | Under comments | Yes. Tools > Preferences > Show Smart Reply suggestions |
| Smart chips | A list that opens after typing @ so you can insert a person, file, date, Calendar event, or place |
At the cursor in the document | Google’s computer help does not document a general off switch for the @ menu |
Smart Compose and Smart Reply are preference settings. Smart chips are an insertion command: typing @ calls up choices. Turning off one of the writing-suggestion checkboxes will not disable the chip menu.
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Turn off Smart Compose suggestions
Smart Compose supplies predictive text while you write. Google says that disabling it also suppresses Smart Compose suggestions in comments.
- On a computer, open the Google Docs file in which you are seeing the suggestions.
- Open the Tools menu in the top toolbar.
- Select Preferences.
- Clear the checkbox labeled Show Smart Compose suggestions.
- Click OK to save the preference.
The inline suggestions should stop in the main editing window, and the same Smart Compose preference applies when you write a comment. This setting is independent of Smart Reply, so clearing it does not remove suggested comment replies.
What counts as a Smart Compose suggestion?
Look for text offered inline as you are composing a sentence. It is not a popup of files, people, or dates, and it is not a row of suggested responses below a comment. If the words appear in the writing flow before you finish a sentence, Smart Compose is the likely feature. Clear its checkbox, save with OK, and test by typing ordinary text in the body of the document and in a comment.
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- Reopen Tools > Preferences and confirm that Show Smart Compose suggestions is still unchecked.
- Check whether the prompt is actually a comment reply or an
@-triggered chip. Those are separate features with separate behavior. - Availability depends on language and account eligibility. A work or school account can have a different rollout or policy from a personal account, and the interface can change as Google updates Docs.
- Make sure you are changing the preference in the same Google account and Docs session where the prompt occurs. If several accounts are open in the browser, identify the account shown for the document before comparing settings.
Do not expect this setting to remove text that has already been inserted. It controls whether new Smart Compose suggestions are shown; existing document text remains part of the document until an editor changes it.
Turn off Smart Reply suggestions
Smart Reply offers short, suggested responses to comments. It has its own checkbox, so you can keep Smart Compose while removing comment-reply suggestions, or disable both.
- Open the document on a computer.
- Choose Tools > Preferences.
- Clear Show Smart Reply suggestions.
- Click OK.
Smart Reply suggestions should no longer be shown beneath comments in that document interface. This does not affect inline Smart Compose text and does not control the @ chip menu.
Smart Reply availability
Google’s product help states that Smart Reply is available in English for Google Docs and Google Slides. Availability can vary by account and rollout. If you do not see the checkbox, the feature may not be enabled for your account, or your administrator may control the setting. If you do see it and clear it, the change applies to Smart Reply only.
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What happens when you type @?
Typing @ in a document opens a suggestion list. You can narrow the list by entering letters, numbers, or symbols. The menu can offer people, Google Docs, Sheets or Slides files, dates, Calendar events, and places. Selecting an item inserts a smart chip containing contextual information or actions.
For example, a people chip can provide an action that opens a Gmail compose tab; a file chip can open the linked file; a Calendar event chip can open the event; and a place chip can expose Maps actions. These behaviors are why the menu is useful, but they also explain why it is not controlled by the Smart Compose or Smart Reply checkboxes.
Why the @ menu can feel like a writing suggestion
The menu appears while you are typing, so it is easy to group it with predictive text. Its purpose is different: it helps insert an object or reference at the cursor. A person entry, a file entry, a date, a Calendar event, and a place are all contextual items rather than alternate words for the sentence you are writing. If the prompt contains these categories, changing Smart Compose will not remove it.
Can you disable smart-chip suggestions?
Google’s computer help for inserting smart chips documents the @ menu and the available chip types, but it does not document a general preference for turning that menu off. That means the supported instructions do not provide a switch equivalent to the Smart Compose and Smart Reply checkboxes.
This is a narrower claim than saying that no account-specific or future control could ever exist. Google can change Docs settings, and administrators or experiments can produce different interfaces. In the currently documented computer workflow, however, there is no general smart-chip off setting to select.
The absence of a checkbox also means that clearing both writing-suggestion options cannot be used as a way to block every prompt in Docs. You can turn off the two documented writing aids and still see the @ picker when you intentionally type that character.
Unofficial ways to dismiss the menu
A Google Docs Community Product Expert has suggested typing a second @ to dismiss the suggestions. The same community answer describes a space-and-delete workaround. These are ways to get past the popup while editing, not Google-supported preferences:
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- Second
@: when the first@opens the list, type another@as suggested by the community answer, then continue editing if the popup closes in your interface. - Space and delete: the community answer also suggests entering a space and then deleting the characters. Use this only as an editing workaround and check the cursor position so you do not remove nearby text.
Community content carries a warning that it may not be verified or current. The behavior can change with the Docs editor, account type, keyboard layout, or rollout. Do not describe either method as a permanent account setting, and do not expect it to prevent the menu from opening the next time you type @.
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If a workaround does not behave as described, stop rather than repeatedly deleting characters. Confirm the cursor is still where you intended, use undo if necessary, and treat the popup as a temporary insertion menu rather than a feature that has been disabled.
Do not use Sheets settings for a Docs problem
Smart Fill is a Google Sheets feature. It is not the Google Docs setting that controls inline writing suggestions, comment replies, or the @ chip menu. If your prompt is in a Docs document, use the Docs preferences described above and identify whether the prompt is inline, under a comment, or attached to @.
Searching for a Sheets option can send you to controls that have no effect in Docs. The product name is not enough to identify the setting: first note which editor is open and what kind of prompt is visible.
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- Look at where the prompt appears. Text completing your sentence in the editing area is Smart Compose. A short response offered under a comment is Smart Reply. A menu that opens immediately after
@is the smart-chip picker. - Open Tools > Preferences. If you want to stop inline suggestions, clear Show Smart Compose suggestions. If you want to stop comment replies, clear Show Smart Reply suggestions. You can clear either checkbox or both.
- Click OK and test the exact behavior again. Type ordinary text in the document, add a comment, and type
@separately. Testing each location prevents a chip popup from being mistaken for a writing suggestion. - If only the
@list remains, use the documented limitation. Google’s help does not provide a general disable switch for that menu. Dismiss it as needed with the community workaround, understanding that it is not guaranteed.
A quick visual checklist
- Faint words or a phrase completing your sentence: check Smart Compose.
- Small reply choices below a comment: check Smart Reply.
- A menu containing people, files, dates, Calendar events, or places after
@: smart chips. - A suggestion appearing in a spreadsheet rather than a document: do not apply this Docs procedure automatically; Smart Fill belongs to Sheets.
Language, account, and rollout limits
Google describes Smart Compose as available in English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French for work or school accounts. Smart Reply is described as available in English for Docs and Slides. Those statements describe eligibility, not a guarantee that every account will show the feature or the same controls.
Several conditions can explain a difference between two users:
- The document may be open under a personal account while the feature description concerns work or school accounts.
- An administrator may manage or restrict features in an organization.
- Google may enable a feature gradually, so the checkbox or wording can differ during a rollout.
- The account’s language or the document’s editing environment may not meet the stated availability conditions.
- Google can revise the Docs interface, so menu placement and wording may change even when the distinction between inline suggestions, comment replies, and chips remains useful.
When a preference is missing, record which account is active, which language is being used, and where the prompt appears before looking for another setting. Do not assume that a missing checkbox means the @ menu has been disabled; they are unrelated controls.
Accuracy and privacy expectations
Google describes Smart Compose and Smart Reply as machine-learning features and cautions that their suggestions do not provide answers and may not always be factually correct. Treat a suggestion as optional text, not as verified information. Turning off the feature removes the suggestion from the editing experience; it does not change the factual status of text you or another collaborator already entered.
This matters in shared documents. A collaborator may still have suggestions enabled, and text they accept can appear in the document even if you have disabled your own prompts. Your preference controls what you see while editing; it is not a proofreading or fact-checking control for everyone’s content.
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Accessibility context for smart chips
Google’s screen-reader guidance describes smart chips as contextual items that can expose actions or information. It also documents keyboard navigation for chip popups. A person using assistive technology may therefore encounter a chip as an interactive item rather than simple text. The examples include opening a Gmail compose tab from a people chip, opening a linked file from a file chip, opening a Calendar event, or exposing Maps actions for a place.
This accessibility guidance explains what the chip controls do and how to navigate them; it does not add a setting for disabling the @ suggestions. If a chip is needed for a shared workflow, consider whether dismissing the popup is preferable to removing the underlying context. If the popup itself is the problem, the documented Smart Compose and Smart Reply checkboxes will not affect it.
When testing keyboard workarounds with a screen reader, listen for the popup state and confirm the insertion point before deleting anything. The community methods are not documented accessibility commands, so their results may differ from the keyboard navigation described in Google’s screen-reader guidance.
What you can and cannot turn off
| Goal | Action | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Stop predictive text while writing | Tools > Preferences; clear Show Smart Compose suggestions; click OK | Smart Compose suggestions stop in the main editor and comments |
| Stop suggested comment replies | Tools > Preferences; clear Show Smart Reply suggestions; click OK | Smart Reply suggestions stop under comments |
Stop the menu opened by @ |
No general off switch is documented in Google’s computer help | Dismiss the popup as needed; the second-@ and space-and-delete methods are unofficial community workarounds |
| Change Google Sheets Smart Fill | Do not use it for this Docs issue | Smart Fill is a Sheets feature and does not control Docs suggestions |
Common mistakes to avoid
- Clearing only Smart Compose: this leaves Smart Reply under comments and the
@menu unchanged. - Clearing only Smart Reply: this removes suggested comment responses but leaves inline completions active.
- Calling every popup a smart chip: inline text and comment replies are different features with documented controls.
- Treating a community workaround as a setting: a second
@or space-and-delete sequence may dismiss one popup but does not disable future menus. - Assuming language eligibility is universal: Smart Compose and Smart Reply have the language and account limits described above.
- Using a Sheets solution in Docs: Smart Fill does not control any of these Docs behaviors.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I turn off all Google Docs suggestions?
Open Tools > Preferences, clear both Show Smart Compose suggestions and Show Smart Reply suggestions, then click OK. This stops the two documented writing-suggestion features. It does not disable the @-triggered smart-chip menu, for which Google’s computer help does not document a general off switch.
Why do suggestions appear after I type @ even though Smart Compose is off?
The @ picker is the smart-chip insertion menu, not Smart Compose. Smart Compose controls inline predictive text; the chip menu can offer people, files, dates, Calendar events, and places. Turning off Smart Compose does not control it.
Can I permanently disable the @ smart-chip menu?
Google’s documented computer instructions explain how to use the menu but do not provide a general preference to disable it. A Community Product Expert has suggested a second @ or a space-and-delete sequence to dismiss a popup, but those are unofficial workarounds and are not permanent settings.
Does turning off Smart Compose also turn off suggestions in comments?
Yes. Google says disabling Smart Compose also suppresses Smart Compose suggestions in comments. Smart Reply is separate, so clear its checkbox as well if you want to remove suggested comment replies.
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Can I turn off Smart Reply but keep Smart Compose?
Yes. In Tools > Preferences, clear only Show Smart Reply suggestions and click OK. Inline Smart Compose remains controlled by its own checkbox.
What languages support Smart Compose and Smart Reply?
Google describes Smart Compose as available in English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French for work or school accounts. Smart Reply is described as available in English for Google Docs and Slides. Account eligibility and rollout can affect what you see.
Why is the Smart Compose or Smart Reply checkbox missing?
The feature may not be available for the active account, language, or rollout. A work or school administrator may also manage access. First identify where the prompt appears and which account is active; a missing writing-suggestion checkbox does not mean the @ menu is disabled.
Are smart chips the same as Smart Fill?
No. Smart chips are a Google Docs insertion feature triggered by @. Smart Fill is a Google Sheets feature and does not control Docs inline suggestions, comment replies, or the chip picker.
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Are the suggested words guaranteed to be correct?
No. Google describes Smart Compose and Smart Reply as machine-learning features and cautions that their suggestions may not always be factually correct. Treat them as optional text and verify any information you use.
Will disabling my suggestions remove text that collaborators already added?
No. The preference controls suggestions shown to you while editing. It does not alter existing document text or remove text accepted by another collaborator.
Do smart chips have accessibility implications?
They can. Google’s screen-reader guidance describes chips as contextual items with actions, such as opening Gmail, a linked file, a Calendar event, or Maps. That guidance explains navigation and behavior, but it does not provide an additional setting to disable the @ menu.
The Bottom Line
Use Tools > Preferences for the two documented writing-assistance controls: clear Smart Compose for inline completions, Smart Reply for comment-response prompts, or both. Typing @ invokes a separate smart-chip menu. Google’s computer help does not document a general way to turn that menu off; a second @ or a space-and-delete sequence may dismiss it according to community advice, but neither is a supported preference.
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