Margins on an MLA format document should be 1 inch on all sides: top, bottom, left, and right.

Standard MLA margin size

  • MLA style requires 1 inch margins around the entire page, not just the left and right.
  • This 1 inch setting applies to every page, including the first page and the Works Cited page.

Related MLA layout details

  • Most MLA guides also recommend a readable 12-point font (like Times New Roman) and double spacing throughout the document.
  • The first line of each paragraph is usually indented 0.5 inch from the left margin, which is separate from the 1 inch page margins.

Quick “how to” in common editors

  • In Word or Google Docs, choosing the “Normal” layout preset almost always sets 1 inch margins automatically, but it is still good practice to confirm this in Page Setup or Layout settings.
  • If margins are not set to 1 inch, manually change top, bottom, left, and right values to 1.0 inches in the page settings dialog.

If a teacher or institution gives different margin instructions, follow those even though MLA’s default is 1 inch on all sides.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.