Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024, 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: Drawing a Table.

Drawing a Table

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated March 8, 2025)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024, and Word in Microsoft 365

As an alternative to inserting a table using the tools on the ribbon, you can use Word's draw-a-table feature. It is easy to do by following these steps:

Display the Insert tab of the ribbon.
Click the Table option on the ribbon. Word displays a drop-down list.
Select Draw Table from the list of options. Word changes to Print Layout view (if you are not already in that view) and changes the mouse pointer so it looks like a pencil.
Use the mouse pointer to define the outside borders of your table, much as you would draw in a drawing program.
Use the pencil to draw the columns and rows into the table.
Press Esc when you are done. Word changes the mouse pointer back to normal.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (5927) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024, and Word in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Drawing a Table.

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...

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