Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 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: Inserting the Edit Time.

Inserting the Edit Time

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated October 22, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365

Word keeps track of how long you work with a file. You can see this information on the Statistics tab of the Properties dialog box. As far as Word is concerned, the cumulative time you have the file open is considered the editing time for the document. You can insert this time, in minutes, in your document by using the following steps:

Position the insertion point where you want the editing time inserted.
Display the Insert tab of the ribbon.
Click the Quick Parts tool (in the Text group) and then click Fields. Word displays the Field dialog box.
Choose Date and Time from the Categories list. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Field dialog box.

Select EditTime from the list of available fields.
Click on OK.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (400) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Inserting the Edit Time.

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. Learn more about Allen...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Adding Many No-Width Optional Breaks

One of the special characters you can add in a document is the no-width optional break. Although originally designed for ...

Discover More

Changing the Size of a Graphic

Adding a graphic to a worksheet is easy. Getting that graphic to just the right size may take a little bit of trial and ...

Discover More

Default Font for Comments

Want your comments to stand out a bit more than normal or, to the contrary, to be minimized? You can affect how comments ...

Discover More

Comprehensive VBA Guide Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) is the language used for writing macros in all Office programs. This complete guide shows both professionals and novices how to master VBA in order to customize the entire Office suite for their needs. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2010 today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Forcing the Date to the Next Wednesday

Working with today's date in Word is easy. Trying to manipulate dates to come up with a future one can be an entirely ...

Discover More

Monday's Date on Friday's Report

Automatically putting today's date at the top of a report is easy. Putting a different date, automatically, can be more ...

Discover More

Inserting the Document Title in Your Document

One of the pieces of information you can store with a document is the title of that document. Using fields, you can then ...

Discover More

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.

Notify me about new comments ONLY FOR THIS TIP

Notify me about new comments ANYWHERE ON THIS SITE

Hide my email address

What is 2 + 8?

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.