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 the Date Your Document was Last Saved.
Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated October 8, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365
Every time you save a document in Word, some of the document properties information is automatically updated. Part of the information is the date on which the document was last saved. You can insert this date into your documents and have it updated automatically, if you so desire. To insert the last date your document was saved in your document, follow these steps:
Figure 1. The Field dialog box.
There is an important caveat to remember when it comes to the last date field—it may not always appear to update. This is because Word doesn't typically update fields—any fields—until it absolutely has to. When does that occur? Normally when you go to print the document. So, the SaveDate field will update when you print, and not before. The way around this is to force Word to update the field, which is done by right-clicking it and choosing Update Field from the resulting Context menu.
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (9719) 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 the Date Your Document was Last Saved.
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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:
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