What type of margins are used in a document with facing pages, such as a magazine?

Get your project off to a great start by configuring settings for print, web, or mobile.

Note: You’ll need the latest version of Adobe InDesign to see these enhancements.  

Create a brand-new document

After launching InDesign, you’ll see the Start Screen. Click Create New to open the New Document dialog box. Or press Command+N (MacOS) or Control+N (Windows).

Select a category

Select a category at the top such as Print, Web, or Mobile. These general categories start you off on the right foot by setting up some parameters for your project like the best color mode and units.

Consider your project before choosing a category. For example, choose Print if you’re designing a business card, poster, or booklet; choose Web if you’re creating a mockup of a webpage, or a PDF that will be read onscreen.

Select a preset

Once you select a category, you’ll find many presets for commonly-used document types. A preset is a handy starting point that creates a blank document using predefined dimensions and settings. For example, after selecting Print, you can click the Letter preset to quickly start your design at that size.

Tip: If you don’t see the entire set of presets shown here, click View All Presets to see more options.

Specify options

Whether or not you start with a preset, you can customize your document in many ways — by typing exact dimensions, changing the measurement units, changing page orientation, and much more. Don’t worry about getting it right at this stage; you can edit all the settings after the document is created.

Specify the number of pages and select Facing Pages to create a double-page spread layout used in magazines and books. Indicate the number of columns on your pages and the space between columns (Column Gutter).

Set margins, bleed, and slug

Open Margins. (You may need to scroll to see it.) Use any unit of measurement to set the margins. For example, you can type 0.5 in or 15 mm even if your document uses Picas or some other units. Set all margins the same, or click the chain icon to set different values for the top, bottom, inside, and outside margins.

You can also enter print bleed values in Bleed and Slug if you know them. Generally, you’ll get these values from your Print Provider at the end of the project. View Set a print bleed to learn how to set up printer’s marks and bleeds for printed documents. 

Tip: Select Preview to view the page settings before you commit. 

Start with a template

Alternatively, you can jumpstart your designs with a high-quality template. If you scroll in the main part of the New Document dialog box, you’ll find free templates with rich designs for a variety of projects, and you can download hundreds more from Adobe Stock.  

When you’re done, click Create to open a document with these settings. 

Change your document settings at any time

Great job setting up your first document. To change any document settings, go to File > Document Setup to change options like the document’s color mode (Intent), page size and orientation, number of pages, or add print bleed values from your print provider.

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