Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, and 2016. 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: Changing the Way Footnotes Are Numbered.
In Word, footnotes can be automatically numbered from 1 through the number of footnotes in the document. Thus, if your document contains 14 footnotes, they will be numbered 1 through 14. You can change the way footnotes are numbered, however. Word allows you to specify both a starting footnote number and whether the numbering starts over with each new section in your document.
Word allows you to change how it handles footnote numbering by following these steps:
Figure 1. The Footnote and Endnote dialog box.
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (5973) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, and 2016. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Changing the Way Footnotes Are Numbered.
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2020-06-05 11:34:42
Hi
I am struggling with a chapter in my book that has footnote numbering out of sequence and nothing I do will make them reorder. I cut paragraphs out in prvious versions and put them else where and also deleted them completely. This si not happen in the remaining 11 chapter even though I did the same kind of editing Help I need thi ssorted as the book is due in to the publisher
2016-11-12 09:33:03
Frederick Williams
I am writing an article of some complexity, and a lot of footnotes. In the course of composition, some notes have been deleted or moved, and others inserted. I now find that they are not in complete numerical sequence: the next note after 10 is 12, and so on. When Ihave tried to renumber some of them manually, a stern warning has appeared on the screen, suggesting that I am in danger of deleting whole notes by this procedure. Is there any foolproof method of renumbering them in normal sequence?
2016-09-06 05:59:45
t seng
Is it possible to start the footnote numbering on an individual basis for each section, or must the start number be the same for all sections?
2016-01-21 07:56:33
david
Hi Jonathan,
you should be able to find that if you look at the image in this post and look at the part labeled "Format."
I bet that if you click on the number format dropdown box you can switch to numbering.
Regards,
David
2016-01-20 17:57:47
Jonathan Carter
How do I convert footnote marks/asterisks to footnote numbers, please?
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Please Note:
This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, and 2016. 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: 
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