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

Squaring Table Cells

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated November 30, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021

Tables can be very handy for organizing information in a document. Word provides the tools you need to create, edit, and format tables. In formatting a table, you may wonder about the best way to "square" all the cells in the table so that they are the same height and width. The answer depends on which version of Word you are using.

Follow these steps:

Insert the table as you normally would, making sure it has the desired number of rows and columns.
Select the entire table.
Make sure that the paragraphs in the table are formatted so there is no space before or after. (Display the Home tab of the ribbon, click the small icon at the lower-right corner of the Paragraph group, and set Before and After to zero.)
Display the Layout tab of the ribbon.
In the Cell Size group, specify identical sizes in the Height and Width boxes.
Click the small icon at the lower-right of the Cell Size group. Word displays the Table tab of the Table Properties dialog box.
Click the Options button. Word displays the Table Options dialog box. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Table Options dialog box.

Make sure all four cell margins are set to the same value.
Clear the Automatically Resize to Fit Contents check box.
Close all the open dialog boxes.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (6113) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Squaring Table Cells.

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

Locking Graphic Annotations to Chart Data Points

Sometimes it is helpful to add annotations to your charts in order to explain the data displayed. This tip provides ...

Discover More

Jumping to the Real Last Cell

Jumping to the last cell in a worksheet should be easy, but you may not always get the results that you expect. This tip ...

Discover More

ExcelTips: The Macros (Special Offer)

ExcelTips: The Macros is the definitive reference on how to use macros in Excel. You can stay at the top of your ...

Discover More

Learning Made Easy! Quickly teach yourself how to format, publish, and share your content using Word 2021 or Microsoft 365. With Step by Step, you set the pace, building and practicing the skills you need, just when you need them! Check out Microsoft Word Step by Step today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Limiting Lines in a Table Cell

When creating tables, Word automatically sets the size of the cells. But what if you want to make sure each cell is a ...

Discover More

AutoFitting Tables

Need to adjust the width of a bunch of table columns according to what is in the columns? Word provides a tool to do ...

Discover More

Quickly Removing Table Borders

Insert a table in your document and Word assumes that you want borders around the table and its cells. Here's a shortcut ...

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 0 + 7?

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.