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 Cells in a Table.

Inserting Cells in a Table

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated July 2, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365


Sometimes you need to increase the size of your table. Word allows you to insert cells in your table (and thereby increase the table size) by following these steps:

  1. Select the cell before which you want a cell inserted.
  2. On the Layout tab of the ribbon, click the small down-pointing arrow at the bottom-right of the Rows & Columns group. Word displays the Insert Cells dialog box. (See Figure 1.)
  3. Figure 1. The Insert Cells dialog box.

  4. Select which way you want the cells to be adjusted.
  5. 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 (5977) 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 Cells in 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. ...

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