Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007 and 2010. 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: Inserting Page Number Cross-References.

Inserting Page Number Cross-References

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated November 3, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 2007 and 2010

Word includes the capacity to add cross-references to page numbers in your document. For instance, you can insert a field that will automatically refer to a bookmark on another page. If the page number containing the bookmark changes, the page number cross-reference changes as well. To insert a page number cross-reference, follow these steps:

Insert a bookmark on the page containing the information you want to cross-reference.
Position the insertion point where you want the cross-reference to occur.
Press Ctrl+F9 to insert field brackets. Make sure the insertion point stays between the brackets.
Type pageref followed by the bookmark name used in step 1.
Press F9 to update the field information.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (11463) applies to Microsoft Word 2007 and 2010. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Inserting Page Number Cross-References.

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...

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What is 8 + 7?

2015-06-03 11:02:30

Eric Klien

You can learn how to update the page number references at http://www.officearticles.com/word/updating_fields_in_microsoft_word.htm

Here's the solution:

Ctrl+A, then F9.

2015-05-21 16:12:37

Mary Ellen

I'm having the same issue as Michelle. I can add the page number references but they don't update. Any suggestions?

2015-02-04 15:35:32

Michelle

This worked great, except that the page numbers are NOT automatically updating if the bookmarked pages change. Please help!

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