+

Cookies on the Business Insider India website

Business Insider India has updated its Privacy and Cookie policy. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the better experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we\'ll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies on the Business Insider India website. However, you can change your cookie setting at any time by clicking on our Cookie Policy at any time. You can also see our Privacy Policy.

Close
HomeQuizzoneWhatsappShare Flash Reads
 

How to remove a page break in Word and get rid of useless blank spaces

Apr 30, 2021, 02:32 IST
Business Insider
You can remove automatic and manually created page breaks in Microsoft Word with just a few clicks.Five/Getty Images
  • You can remove page breaks in a Microsoft Word document by deleting it, or through the Line and Page Breaks menu.
  • Clicking Word's "Show/Hide ¶" option will let you see the page breaks you've made and remove them.
  • The Line and Page Breaks menu is great for removing breaks that were placed automatically, like at the ends of pages.
Advertisement

Page breaks can be a helpful formatting tool when working in Microsoft Word. But if you use too many - or worse, Word automatically inserts too many - your document can quickly become cluttered with blank spaces.

Here's how to adjust or remove page breaks in Microsoft Word, whether they're manual or automatic, on both Windows and Mac computers.

How to remove a manual page break in Word for Windows

  1. To remove a page break you added in manually, click the Home tab.
  2. Click Show/Hide ¶ to display the page breaks in your document.

    Click the Show/Hide paragraph button to see where your paragraph, section, and page breaks are.Abigail Abesamis Demarest/Insider
  3. Find the manual page break you want to remove and double click the page break to highlight it.

    Highlight the page break before you hit Delete.Abigail Abesamis Demarest/Insider
  4. Finally, hit the Delete or Backspace key to remove it.

How to remove an automatic page break in Word on Windows

  1. Select the paragraphs you want to adjust by highlighting them with your cursor.
  2. Click the Layout or Page Layout tab.
  3. Next, click Breaks in the Page Setup section.

    Click the Breaks button in the Page Setup section under the Layout tab.Abbey White/Insider
  4. In the Line and Page Breaks tab, choose the settings you want to apply. Turn these all off to reduce automatic page breaks.

    If you choose "Widow/Orphan control": Word will automatically place page breaks to prevent you from starting a new paragraph on the last line of a page, or having the last line of a paragraph alone on a new page.

    If you choose "Keep with next": Word will keep two consecutive paragraphs together and not separated by a page break.

    If you choose "Keep lines together": This option will prevent Word from adding page breaks in the middle of a paragraph.

    If you choose "Page break before": You can add a page break before the selected paragraph.

    Select how you want Word to adjust your page break before clicking OK.Abbey White/Insider

How to remove a manual page break in Word on Mac

  1. To remove a manual page break, start by clicking the Home tab.
  2. Next, select "Show all nonprinting characters ¶" to display the page breaks in your document.
  3. Find the manual page break you want to remove, then click to the right of the paragraph mark. You can also highlight the page break.

    Click to the right of or highlight the page break you want to delete.Abbey White/Insider
  4. Hit the Delete key to erase it.

How to remove an automatic page break in Word on Mac

  1. Select the paragraphs you want to adjust by highlighting them with your cursor.
  2. Click the Format tab.
  3. Choose Paragraph.

    Click Format in the Apple toolbar and select Paragraph from the drop-down.Abbey White/Insider
  4. Under the Line and Page Breaks tab, choose the settings you want to apply. Turn these all off to reduce automatic page breaks.

    "Widow/Orphan control" will include at least two lines of a paragraph at the top or bottom of a page. This prevents you from having a new paragraph starting on the last line before a page break or having the last line of a paragraph alone on a new page.

    "Keep with next" will keep two consecutive paragraphs together and not separated by a page break.

    "Keep lines together" will prevent Word from adding page breaks in the middle of a paragraph.

    "Page break before" can add a page break before the selected paragraph.
    Select how you want the document to respond to your removed page break and click OK.Abbey White/Insider
How to double space in Microsoft Word on different versions of the word processorHow to insert a blank page in Word and keep your document's formatting intactHow to add page numbers to a Microsoft Word document header or footer on a PC or MacHow to remove a section break in Word and reformat the layout of your document
You are subscribed to notifications!
Looks like you've blocked notifications!
Next Article