Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, and 2013. 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: Viewing Footnotes and Endnotes.
Word implements a full-featured footnote and endnote system that allows you total control over where and how footnotes and endnotes are printed. If you are viewing your document in Print Layout view, the footnotes or endnotes appear in your document the same as any other text—at the place where they are configured to appear on the printout.
If you are viewing your document in Draft view, footnotes and endnotes are not normally visible. Word opens the Footnotes or Endnotes window at the bottom of the document window whenever you insert a footnote or endnote in this view. Most users, when they are through entering the note text, close the window so they will be able to see more of their document at once. If you later want to view the footnotes or endnotes window, you can display the References tab of the ribbon and click Show Notes in the Footnotes group. This displays the Footnotes or Endnotes window. You can then make changes to footnotes or endnotes in the window, if you so desire.
If you have both footnotes and endnotes defined in the same document, Word will ask you to indicate which you want to view prior to displaying the Footnotes or Endnotes window. All you need to do is select which one you want to view, and then click your mouse on OK.
Once the Footnotes or Endnotes window is displayed, you can select which type of notes are displayed in the window. You do this by using the drop-down Footnotes control at the top of the window to select what you want displayed. If you choose All Footnotes, then the footnotes are displayed; choosing All Endnotes displays all the endnotes for your document.
To close the footnotes window, you can either click your mouse on the Close button at the top of the Footnotes window, or you can again choose Footnotes from the View 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 (10760) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, and 2013. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Viewing Footnotes and Endnotes.
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2019-09-03 10:31:17
Andrew
Dan, try executing this command (either in a macro or in the immediate window of the VB editor):
ActiveWindow.View.SplitSpecial = wdPaneFootnotes
Note, you'll get an error if there are no footnotes in the document at the time of execution, so you might want to insert "on error resume next" if using this in a macro.
2019-09-03 00:30:08
Dan Harris
Is there a way to always see all footnotes while working in Print Layout in MS Word. In my case, footnotes used to show, even in long or multiple, by either moving the dividing line up or continuing on bottom of next page. It's one thing to know they will appear when printed. But, while drafting, in Print Layout it is also helpful to see them. Now, if too long or multiple, the excess that does not fit on the page below the unmoved divider is simply not shown. Any ideas?
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Please Note:
This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, and 2013. 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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