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: Printing Odd or Even Pages.

Printing Odd or Even Pages

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated February 10, 2024)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365


There may be many times that you need to print either odd or even pages in a print job. For instance, you may want to put your pages through the printer twice so you can print on both sides. (This is a viable approach if your printer doesn't automatically print on both sides of the paper.)

To specify whether you want to print odd or even pages, follow these steps if you are using Word 2007:

  1. Press Ctrl+P. Word displays the Print dialog box. (See Figure 1.)
  2. Figure 1. The Print dialog box.

  3. Adjust the printing settings as desired.
  4. Using the Print drop-down list at the bottom of the dialog box, choose either Odd Pages or Even Pages, as desired. (Make sure you use the Print drop-down list, not the Print What drop-down list.)
  5. Click on OK. Your document is printed.

If you are using Word 2010 or a later version the steps are a bit different. This is because Microsoft did away with the Print dialog box, instead merging the printing options into the File tab of the ribbon. When you press Ctrl+P (in the steps above), it is these options, on the File tab, that are displayed. (See Figure 2.)

Figure 2. The printing settings in Word.

You want to click the first option under the Settings heading. Word displays a list of things you can print. At the bottom of the list you see two options: Only Print Odd Pages and Only Print Even Pages. Select the desired setting, and then print as normal.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (10647) 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: Printing Odd or Even Pages.

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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