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: Deleting All Footnotes.

Deleting All Footnotes

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated January 27, 2024)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365

Certain types of documents require the use of footnotes to help document sources or provide additional information relative to the content being discussed. At some point you may want to delete all the footnotes in your document. One thing you can try is to do a simple search and replace to remove all the footnotes. Follow these steps:

Press Ctrl+H to display the Replace tab of the Find and Replace dialog box. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Replace tab of the Find and Replace dialog box.

In the Find What box, enter ^f. This indicates that you want to search for footnote marks.
Make sure the Replace With box is empty.
Click on Replace All.
Close the Find and Replace dialog box.

This approach works because when you delete footnote marks, the footnote associated with that mark is also automatically deleted.

If you find yourself ridding lots of documents of their footnotes, you may want to create a macro that will do the job for you. This macro can then be assigned to the Quick Access Toolbar or to a shortcut key. The following macro will remove all the footnotes in a document:

Sub DelFoots()
    Dim fn As Footnote

    For Each fn In ActiveDocument.Footnotes
        fn.Delete
    Next 
End Sub

Note:

If you would like to know how to use the macros described on this page (or on any other page on the WordTips sites), I've prepared a special page that includes helpful information. Click here to open that special page in a new browser tab.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (11407) 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: Deleting All Footnotes.

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. Learn more about Allen...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Plain Text Pasting as the Default

Pasting 'plain text" into a document is one of the most common ways of pasting information. Wouldn't it be great if this ...

Discover More

Finding Duplicate Data Across Worksheets

Conditional formatting can be easily set up to check data on the current worksheet. If you want to check data on the ...

Discover More

Using the GotoButton Field

Need to jump from one place in your document to another? One way to do this is through the user of the GotoButton field, ...

Discover More

Create Custom Apps with VBA! Discover how to extend the capabilities of Office 365 applications with VBA programming. Written in clear terms and understandable language, the book includes systematic tutorials and contains both intermediate and advanced content for experienced VB developers. Designed to be comprehensive, the book addresses not just one Office application, but the entire Office suite. Check out Mastering VBA for Microsoft Office 365 today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Understanding Footnotes and Endnotes

Footnotes and endnotes are often used in scholarly and formal writing as a way to provide additional information about a ...

Discover More

Formatting Footnotes and Endnotes

Footnotes and endnotes can be formatted in the same way that you format regular text in your document. There is an easier ...

Discover More

Changing How Footnote References Appear

Footnote references normally appear as superscripted digits, both in the main body of your document and in the footnotes ...

Discover More

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.

Notify me about new comments ONLY FOR THIS TIP

Notify me about new comments ANYWHERE ON THIS SITE

Hide my email address

What is 9 - 8?

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.