Quick answer: To make text bigger or smaller on the site you are reading, hold Ctrl and press + or –, or hold Ctrl and roll the mouse wheel. Press Ctrl + 0 to put that site back to normal. To change the size on every site, open the three-dot menu, go to Settings, then Appearance, and pick a new Font size. On a Mac, use Command in place of Ctrl.
Before You Start
- Applies to: Google Chrome on Windows, macOS, Linux and ChromeOS.
- Mac users: press Command wherever these steps say Ctrl.
- Nothing here is permanent. Every change described below can be undone in a couple of clicks.
- On a phone: Chrome for Android has its own Accessibility section with a text scaling slider, and Chrome for iPhone follows the system text size.
How Do You Change the Text Size on Just One Website?
This is the one to reach for when a single site has annoyingly small print. There is no need to open Chrome settings at all.
- Open the website.
- Hold Ctrl and press + to make everything bigger, or – to make it smaller.
- You can do the same with a mouse. Hold Ctrl and roll the scroll wheel up or down.
- To put that site back to normal, press Ctrl + 0 (that is a zero).
Chrome remembers this setting for that site. Next time you visit, it will still be at the size you chose, which is handy, and is also the reason a single site can look oddly large or tiny for months after one accidental scroll.
How Do You Change the Default Font Size for Every Website?
- Click the three-dot menu icon at the top right of Chrome.
- Choose Settings.
- Select Appearance from the list on the left.
- Open the Font size menu and pick the size you want. The change applies straight away, with no restart.
The choices are:
- Very small
- Small
- Medium (this is the default)
- Large
- Very large
If you want finer control than five steps, click Customize fonts in the same Appearance section. That gives you a slider for the font size and a separate one for the minimum font size, which stops sites from drawing anything below the size you set.
Font Size or Page Zoom: Which One Should You Change?
Chrome gives you two nearby settings that look similar and do different jobs. Picking the right one saves a lot of frustration.
- Font size changes only the text. Images, buttons and page layout stay the same size. This is the better choice if you find reading tiring but the rest of the page is fine.
- Page zoom enlarges the whole page, text and pictures together, the way Ctrl and plus does. This is the better choice when a whole site is cramped.
Page zoom sits in the same Appearance section, and setting it there applies it to every site instead of just the one in front of you.
Why Did the Text Size Not Change on One Site?
Some sites set their own text size in a way that ignores Chrome’s Font size setting. When that happens, use page zoom instead, either with Ctrl and + on that site or by raising the default page zoom in Appearance. Zoom always wins, because it scales the finished page rather than asking the site politely.
If one site is the wrong size and everything else is fine, check that you have not left a per-site zoom behind. Open the site and press Ctrl + 0.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does changing the font size affect other browsers or my whole computer?
No. This setting lives inside Chrome and only affects web pages you view in Chrome. Your desktop, your other browsers and your other apps are untouched.
How do I undo everything and go back to the default?
Set Font size back to Medium and Page zoom back to 100% in Appearance, then press Ctrl + 0 on any site you had zoomed by hand.
Does the text size sync to my other devices?
Chrome sync covers settings when you are signed in with sync switched on, but appearance options can differ between a desktop and a phone. Check the setting on each device rather than assuming it carried over.
Can I make the text bigger in the Chrome menus and tabs too?
Not from Chrome. The menus, tabs and address bar follow your operating system’s display scaling. Change the scaling or text size in Windows display settings, macOS Accessibility, or ChromeOS device settings.
Related Reading
- Facebook Page Gone Small in Chrome? Here Is the Fix
- How to View the Mobile Version of a Website on Desktop Chrome
- Fixing High Contrast in Videos and Streams in Chrome
- How to Adjust Screen Brightness on Your Chromebook
Last verified: 18 August 2026.
