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Get to know your way around GitBook's documentation platform.

This page walks you through various sections, features and menus that you'll find within the GitBook app. Start by creating or logging into your account at app.gitbook.com.

Permissions The sidebar can be viewed by everyone, although guests might not see any spaces if they have not been assigned permissions at the content level.

Only you have access to any content in the private section of each organization's library.

Space header and sub-navigation can be seen by everyone, although the number of options available will vary based on your permissions.

The table of contents, page header, editor, page actions, and on this page sections are visible to all.

Sidebar

A screenshot of the GitBook app. On the left is a dark blue sidebar with a search bar, links to different spaces in the GitBook organization, notification and settings buttons, and a plus button to create new content. On the right is the editor and a collection called Company Wiki.
The sidebar in the GitBook app

The sidebar is the dark blue (in light mode) or black (in dark mode) section on the left-hand side of the app.

You can use the arrow near the top to open and close the sidebar. Closing the sidebar might be helpful when you want more space to focus on the documentation you're writing.

The sidebar contains:

  • The quick find field Quick find helps you quickly navigate between your content, as well as performing common actions.

  • Your libraries Libraries contain collections and spaces. Use the switch organization toggle, found next to the name of the library, to move between libraries.

  • The notifications bell Located in the bottom-left corner of the sidebar, the notifications bell will let you know about actions that have been taken.

  • The add new button Located at the bottom in the center of the sidebar, you can use this to add a new organization or a new space.

  • The settings menu icon You'll find this menu icon in the bottom-right corner of the sidebar. Click to access personal and organization settings, switch between dark and light mode, get help from the support team, offer feedback, and sign out of the GitBook app.

Space header

A screenshot of the GitBook app. The image is darkened except for a white bar at the top which is the space header. In the space header you can see the name of the space, which is API Docs, and an emoji for the space which is a cog. on the right of the space header there is a plus button to invite members to the space, and profile pictures of members who are currently active in the space. Lastly there is a button that says publish. This button is used to change the visibility of the space.
The space header in the GitBook app

The space header is a narrow area at the very top of the GitBook app. It includes:

  • The internal space emoji You can choose from a large list of emojis to help you to more easily identify your space. This setting only affects what you see when logged into the GitBook app. (A public setting is located in the space customization options.)

  • The space name If you want to change the name of the space, simply click into this field and begin typing.

  • The share menu From here you can select a visibility option for your space and, once a space is published, access the link and custom domain settings for the space.

  • The edit button Click this to start a new change request.

  • The space actions menu The icon with three vertical dots in the very top-right corner opens up a number of actions for the space.

Space sub-navigation

A screenshot of the GitBook app. Towards the top is a highlighted section which is the space sub-navigation menu. In the menu there are links: change requests, history, customize, discussions, files, insights, and integrations.
The sub-navigation in the GitBook app

The space sub-navigation is another narrow area near the top of the GitBook app, immediately underneath the space header.

Similar to the sidebar, it has an up arrow on the right-hand side that you can click to hide this area. If you want to show it again afterwards, you'll find the down arrow to click on at the right-hand side of the space header.

The space sub-navigation includes links to:

  • Change requests From here you can create a new change request and review existing ones. There's a tab for each status: draft, in review, archived and merged.

  • Customize These settings allow you to affect the look and feel of the space, as well as configure features.

  • Discussions You can have space-level conversations with other collaborators of organization-owned spaces here. You can use the feature in spaces that you own personally, too, but you'll have to provide both sides of the conversation!

  • Insights Insights help you to understand how your public content is being viewed and searched.

  • Integrations You can connect GitBook to some other collaboration tools.

  • Files Upload and manage files from this area.

  • History Clicking this opens up to provide details about both activity and change history for the space.

  • Comments You can have space-level conversations with other collaborators of organization-owned spaces here. You can use the feature in spaces that you own personally, too, but you'll have to provide both sides of the conversation!

Table of contents

A screenshot of the GitBook app. On the left, next to the side bar is a highlighted section. This is the table of contents. The names of the pages in the space are listed here. At the bottom of the list of pages there is a button that says "New page".
The table of contents in the GitBook app

The table of contents is the list of document pages, links, and groups that make up a space. It's located to the right of the sidebar, and underneath the space sub-navigation.

  • A document page is for content that lives within the space. You'll write that content within the GitBook app (or in a Git repository, if you prefer). You can click on the name of any page to open it in the editor.

  • A link looks a lot like any other page in the table of contents, but clicking on it opens whichever link you set. This is a good way to point your documentation readers to other websites, where that's relevant. You'll see a small icon on the right-hand side of the link, which indicates that it will open in a new tab.

  • A group is a title for one or more pages and/or links. Groups enable you to organize your content into sections.

There are also some options available from the table of contents. Hover over any document page, link, or group for a second and you'll see an icon with three vertical dots appear on the right-hand side of the item. Click on this to reveal the menu.

The option to create a new document page, link or group can be found at the bottom of the table of contents. If live edits are enabled in your space, you'll see it right away. If live edits are disabled, then you will need to be working in a change request to be able to see this option.

Page header

A screenshot of the GitBook app. There is a highlighted section underneath the space sub-navigation menu. This is the page header. In large font is the name of the page: Welcome!. To the left of the page name is an emoji symbol. Underneath the page name is written "page description (optional)". On the right of the page header there is a button with 3 dots.
The page header in the GitBook app

The page header is made up of:

  1. An optional emoji for the page.

  2. The page title, which will always match the page name in the table of contents.

  3. An optional page description.

Depending on the width of your screen, you might also see a menu icon with 3 vertical dots in the top-right corner of the page header section. You can expect to see this if your browser width is less than 1430 pixels wide. Clicking on this icon will reveal the page actions menu. In a wider browser window, you would see this menu in the right column, instead.

Editor

A screenshot of the GitBook app. There is a large highlighted section in the right-bottom corner of the image. This is the editor section of the GitBook app. There are 2 headings on the page: "Welcome to MyAPI" and "Want to jump right in?". Under each heading is some paragraph text.
The editor in the GitBook app.

The editor is where you create the content for your documentation. We offer lots of different content blocks — headings, lists, tables, images, code blocks, and more!

In addition, you can embed content from other places, and we support markdown to help you create content even more quickly.

Page actions

A screenshot of the GitBook app. There is a highlighted section on the right hand side. This is the page actions menu. There are buttons for different actions to take on the page. The buttons are: Insert subpage, Import subpages, Add cover, Rename, Duplicate, Delete, Page layout, Export as PDF, Copy link.
The page actions menu in the GitBook app

Page actions are located on the right-hand side of the editor. These actions will be available to you when you're in a space that has live edits enabled, or when you're working in a change request.

If you can't see the right-hand column of the app, this may be because your browser window is less than 1430 pixels wide. You'll see an icon for the page actions menu in the page header, instead.

On this page

A screenshot of the GitBook app. There is a highlighted section in the bottom right corner with the title "On this page". Underneath the title are the page headings: Welcome to my API, What to jump right in?, Want to deep dive?.
On this page in the GitBook app

The on this page section is located on the right-hand side of the editor, underneath page actions. When you have more than one on a page, every heading 1 and heading 2 content block title will be listed here, making it easier for you to jump up/down the page to the section you want to work on.

If you can't see the right-hand column of the app, this may be because your browser window is less than 1430 pixels wide. Your browser window will need to be at least 1430 pixels wide to see and use the on this page section.

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#230: My changes

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