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: Table Numbers are Skipped.

Table Numbers are Skipped

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated November 4, 2023)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365


Geoff has a Word document with about 40 numbered tables. In a few places throughout the document the table numbering breaks down. For example, the table numbers will skip a number, e.g. Table 16, Table 17, then Table 19. The cross referencing also goes wrong, and the table list in the table of contents is wrong. Geoff has updated fields throughout the document and re-inserted the table captions, but to no avail.

There are no clear-cut answers as to why this problem could be happening, but there are a few things you can try. First, you should check the styles used for the captions. Make sure that there are no inconsistencies in the styles used (at either a paragraph or character level), as this could cause Word to throw off the number under some circumstances.

Next, check the actual fields used for the table captions. Display the field codes (press Alt+F9) and compare them to make sure that they, too, are consistent with each other.

Also check to make sure that hidden text is displayed in your document. It could be that the missing caption is there, but is marked as hidden text and therefore not displayed. You can display the hidden text by displaying the Word Options dialog box and using the controls accessible when you click Display at the left side of the dialog box.

If you've been using Track Changes in the document, it is also possible that the missing caption was accidentally deleted, but Word still treats it as if it is there for numbering purposes. Make sure Track Changes is turned off, and then use the controls on the Review tab of the ribbon to accept all the changes in the document. Refresh the fields, and hopefully your missing caption number will reappear.

Finally, if none of the above work, you should consider the possibility that the document is somehow corrupted. (Document corruption can manifest itself in a variety of ways.) Open a new, blank document, and then select the entire original document except the final paragraph mark. (Excluding this final paragraph mark is very important.) Press Ctrl+C, go back to the blank document, then press Ctrl+V. Check to see, in the new document, if the numbering is corrected.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (10178) 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: Table Numbers are Skipped.

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. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Searching for White Space

White space permeates our documents, and sometimes you'll need to search for that white space. Word makes it easy to ...

Discover More

Feeling All Powerful?

Need all your Control Panel shortcuts in a simple place? Use this tip to create a special folder that contains all the ...

Discover More

Deleting a Range of Pages

Need to delete a range of pages out of the middle of your document? It's easy to do using editing techniques you already ...

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)

Adding Table Columns to Columns with Merged Cells

Word's table editor allows you to modify the structure of tables in a wide variety of ways. If you want to add columns to ...

Discover More

Aligning Digits in a Table

Placing information in your table is only half the battle. You also need to figure out the best ways to format that ...

Discover More

Table Borders Won't Print

Print a table and you may be surprised if it has no borders. That could be because you actually have the borders turned ...

Discover More
Subscribe

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.

What is two minus 0?

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.

Videos
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.