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: Deleting a Header or Footer.
Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated December 18, 2021)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Microsoft 365
If you want to fully delete a header or footer in your document, follow these steps:
You may wonder why you don't just click Remove Header or Remove Footer, options available after you complete step 3 of these steps. The reason is simple—in my testing, clicking those options removes the header or footer text, but it doesn't remove the header or footer paragraph. Thus, if you have (for instance) a header or footer that includes a paragraph border, that border is still visible after you use the Remove Header or Remove Footer tools. The only way to get rid of the entire thing is to follow the steps as outlined.
Remember, as well, that if your document uses sections, it is possible for there to be three headers and three footers for each section in your document. (An odd-page header/footer, an even-page header/footer, and a first-page header/footer.) If you want to delete all the headers and footers in every section of your document, it is better to use a macro. In that case, you may find the macro in this WordTip a real timesaver: Deleting All Headers and Footers.
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (6819) 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: Deleting a Header or Footer.
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2024-06-18 01:25:33
Phil Getz
That doesn't work for me. I had to double-click on the footer, then go to "Position" at top and set it to zero.
It still didn't look like it had worked, because Word 2019 automatically puts page breaks between paragraphs.
Exporting the docx as doc fixed that.
2023-04-13 04:33:32
Dow
That you for the tip.
My problem: whilst I can successfully remove a header, and 'save' the document, when I re-open it, the header has reappeared...
I'm running Word 2021 on a Mac. I'm having the same problem in lots of documents, which is odd. Some DO save the 'Remove header' change, but lots don't.
I'm also puzzled how the headers got there, as I seldom ever create them.
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