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: Adding Sidebars.
Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated August 13, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365
In publishing, sidebars are used extensively in some page designs. You often see them in magazines and sometimes in books. A sidebar is generally a short, concise treatment of a subject related to the main text, but which is called out in a boxed format to the side of the main text. Sidebars are generally digressions from the main topic of the text, and if they were included in the main text they would distract from the information being conveyed.
In Word, the usual way of creating sidebars is to use a text box. To create a sidebar, follow these general steps:
Your sidebar has been placed, and you can type text in the box that defines the sidebar. You can also position and format the text box, using tips provided in other issues of WordTips, to appear exactly as you desire.
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (10668) 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: Adding Sidebars.
Learning Made Easy! Quickly teach yourself how to format, publish, and share your content using Word 2013. With Step by Step, you set the pace, building and practicing the skills you need, just when you need them! Check out Microsoft Word 2013 Step by Step today!
Text boxes allow you to "segment" information in your document and lay it out differently. You can easily resize these ...
Discover MoreIf your document has quite a few text boxes within it, you may want to extract the contents of those text boxes to a new ...
Discover MoreText boxes can be handy when it comes to noting information in a document or dealing with some tricky layout issues. If ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)
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.
Visit the WordTips channel on YouTube
FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
Copyright © 2025 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
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:
Comments