Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Microsoft 365. If you are using an earlier version (Word 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Word, click here: Formatting Footnotes and Endnotes.

Formatting Footnotes and Endnotes

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated July 26, 2023)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Microsoft 365


You can format footnotes and endnotes in the same manner in which you format regular text. If you have a large number of notes in your text, however, it could get tedious to manually format every one. Instead, consider changing the styles that Word automatically applies to footnotes and endnotes.

When you add your first footnote to a document, Word automatically creates a style called Footnote Text. Similarly, the addition of your first endnote creates the Endnote Text style. These two text styles will be listed in the Styles pane if you choose to show All Styles. (If you are using Word 2010 or a later version, display the Home tab of the ribbon, click the small icon at the bottom-right of the Styles group to open the Styles pane, and click on Options at the bottom of the Styles pane. Then choose All Styles in the Select Styles To Show drop-down list.) Change these styles according to your needs, and your footnotes and endnotes will look great.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (6088) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Formatting Footnotes and Endnotes.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Renaming a Toolbar

Create your own toolbars and, at some point, you may have a hankering to change their names. Here's how you can make the ...

Discover More

The EDATE Function

Want to figure a date a certain number of months in the future or past? The EDATE function may be just what you need for ...

Discover More

Problems Pasting Large Pictures

If you insert a large picture in your document and your text jumps all around and the picture seems to disappear, don't ...

Discover More

The First and Last Word on Word! Bestselling For Dummies author Dan Gookin puts his usual fun and friendly candor back to work to show you how to navigate Word 2013. Spend more time working and less time trying to figure it all out! Check out Word 2013 For Dummies today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Reference to a Range of Endnotes

When multiple endnote references are used at a given point in your document, you may wonder if there is a way to compress ...

Discover More

Changing Space between the Footnote Separator and Footnotes

When you add footnotes to a document, Word separates those footnotes from the document body with a separator line. Here's ...

Discover More

Footnote Numbers Missing on Printout

When you add footnotes to a document, you expect the footnote reference numbers to be visible when you print the ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 6 + 5?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


This Site

Got a version of Word that uses the ribbon interface (Word 2007 or later)? This site is for you! If you use an earlier version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the menu interface.

Videos
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.