Change the look of text in Pages on iPad
You can change how text looks by changing its font, size, or color, or by adding bold, italic, or other formatting. You can also fill text with gradients or images, or add an outline. To highlight text, you can add color behind it.
Change text using the keyboard
You can use the shortcut bar above the keyboard to quickly change the font. The shortcut bar on the iPad Pro is different from the one shown below.
Note: If you don’t see the shortcut bar, go to Settings > General > Keyboards and turn Shortcuts on.
Do any of the following:
Change the font: Tap the font name on the left side of the predictive text fields, then tap a font.
Change the font style: Tap the font name, tap
next to the font name, then tap a format (regular, bold, italic, or semibold, for example).Change the font size: Tap
, then tap a size.Add bold, italic, or underline: Tap
, then tap a style at the bottom of the menu. On iPad Pro, tap 
to the left of the font size button, then tap a style.
If your document needs to use China mainland government standard font sizes, change the region for your iPad. Then, regardless of the language you use to enter text, you see the Chinese sizes in addition to the point sizes.
Change text using the Format controls
Select the text you want to change—or tap a text box, shape, or table cell—then tap
.If you don’t see text controls, tap Cell or Text.
Do any of the following:
Apply a different paragraph style: Tap the style name below Paragraph Style, then tap a new paragraph style (scroll to see more).You can’t apply a paragraph style to text in a table cell.
Change the font: Tap Font, then tap a new font. To see more options for the font, tap
next to the font name, then tap a format (condensed, light, or semibold, for example).Apply bold, italic, underline, or strikethrough: Tap any of the buttons below Font.
Change the size: Tap
next to Size to decrease or increase the font size, or tap the font size and enter a new value.
Change the color of text
Select the text you want to change—or tap a text box, shape, or table cell—then tap
.If you don’t see text controls, tap Cell or Text.
Tap Text Color, then choose one of the following:
A color or gradient designed to go with the template: Tap Preset, swipe left or right to see all the choices, then tap a color.
Any color: Tap Color, then tap a color. To preview text in different colors, touch and hold a color, then drag across the grid. A color label appears for each previewed color to help you reproduce an exact match. Release your finger to select a color.
A color from elsewhere on the page: Tap Color, then swipe left to the color wheel. Tap
, then tap any color outside of the selected text. To preview colors, touch and hold a color on the page, then drag across other colors on the page. Release your finger to select a color.A custom color: Tap Color, swipe left to the color wheel, then drag the slider around the wheel. To change color brightness, drag the top horizontal slider. To change color saturation, drag the bottom slider. To revert to the previous color, tap the circle in the center of the color wheel (the left half shows the previous color).
A recently created custom color or a recently selected color from elsewhere on the page: Tap Color, swipe left to the color wheel, then tap a color well to the right of
.A two-color gradient fill: Tap Gradient, tap Start Color or End Color, then tap a color or swipe left to use the color wheel. To switch the gradient direction, tap Flip Color. To change the gradient angle, drag the Angle slider. To apply the gradient based on the length of the shape or text box (not the size of the selected text), select the checkbox next to Apply Gradient to Entire Object. The gradient changes when the size of the object or text box changes. To apply the gradient across the full length of the page, select the checkbox next to Apply Gradient to Entire Page.
Fill text with an image
Select the text you want to change—or tap a text box, shape, or table cell—then tap
.Tap Cell (for text in a table) or Text (for text in a shape or text box) to show the text controls.
Tap Text Color or Color, then tap Image.
Tap Change Image, then do one of the following:
Tap an album, then tap a photo.
Tap Take Photo.
Tap “Insert from” to choose an image from iCloud Drive.
If the image doesn’t look the way you expected or you want to change how the image fills the object, tap an option:
Original Size: Places the image inside the text without altering the image’s original dimensions. To resize the image, drag the Scale slider.
Stretch: Resizes the image to fit the text’s dimensions, which might change the image’s proportions.
Tile: Repeats the image inside the text. To resize the image, drag the Scale slider.
Scale to Fill: Makes the image larger or smaller to leave no space in the text.
Scale to Fit: Resizes the image to fit the text’s dimensions, but maintains the image’s proportions. Some text might not be filled.
To create a tinted image, turn on Color Overlay and tap Fill to select a tint color.
To make the tint more or less transparent, drag the Opacity slider.
Add or remove a text outline
Select the text you want to change—or tap a text box, shape, or table cell—then tap
.Tap Cell (for text in a table) or Text (for text in a shape or text box) to show the text controls.
Tap
in the Font section of the controls.Turn Outline on or off.
If you add an outline, use the controls to change its line type, color, and width.
Tip: You can remove the text color to emphasize the outline. Tap , tap Text, then tap Text Color. Tap Preset, swipe to the black and white options, and then tap No Fill.
Add a background color to text
You can add color behind any selection of text—individual characters, words, or entire paragraphs—to create a highlight effect.
Select the text you want to change—or tap a text box or shape—then tap
.If you don’t see text controls, tap Text.
Tap
in the Font section of the controls.Swipe up, then tap Text Background.
Swipe left or right to see colors (tap Preset or Color to change the options), then tap one.
For more information about color options, see "Change the color of text,” above.
To remove the background color from selected text, tap Preset, then swipe to the black and white options and tap No Fill.
You can keep text formatting consistent in a document by using text styles.