Margins and spacing for MLA paper format. The MLA paper format for margins and spacing is easy to set up in any word processor, so make sure to follow these guidelines when formatting your paper. Use 1-inch margins on the top, bottom and both sides. Indent the first sentence of each paragraph 1 inch from the left margin of your paper. The default setup of the âTabâ key is set to 1 inch, and the MLA paper format suggests using the Tab key instead of entering five spaces using the space bar. Use standard double spacing throughout the entire text of your paper.