Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Office 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: Changing Headers and Footers.

Changing Headers and Footers

by Allen Wyatt
(last updated November 9, 2019)

You can easily change the text in a header or footer by using the Header/Footer option from the View menu, in the following manner:

  1. Display the Insert tab of the ribbon.
  2. Click either the Header or Footer tool in the Header & Footer group. Word displays a list of options.
  3. Click Edit Header or Edit Footer, depending on what you selected in step 2. Word activates either the header or footer area of the page.
  4. Change the contents of the header or footer in the same manner as you edit normal text in your document.
  5. Click on the Close Header and Footer tool (on the Design tab of the ribbon) when you are done making changes.

You should note that if your page already has headers or footers, you should be able to see them on your screen. To modify the header or footer, you can simply double-click on the area you want to change.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (7918) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Office 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Changing Headers and Footers.

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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