Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024, 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: Inserting Page Number Cross-References.

Inserting Page Number Cross-References

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated June 14, 2025)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024, and Word in Microsoft 365

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.

If you edit the document after inserting the field and you want to make sure that the field results are accurate, all you need to do is to press Ctrl+A to select the entire document and then press F9.

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, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024, and Word in Microsoft 365. 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...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Selectively Find and Replace Page Borders

Using Find and Replace you can both find and replace graphics in your document. Replacing graphics selectively is a bit ...

Discover More

Keyboard Shortcut to Access Header and Footer

Some folks like to avoid using the mouse whenever possible, preferring to leave their hands on the keyboard. If you are ...

Discover More

Ordering Worksheets Based on a Cell Value

Need to sort your worksheets so that they appear in an order determined by the value of a cell on each worksheet? Using a ...

Discover More

The First and Last Word on Word! Bestselling For Dummies author Dan Gookin puts his usual fun and friendly candor back to work to show you how to navigate Word 2019. Spend more time working and less time trying to figure it all out! Check out Word 2019 For Dummies today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Special Characters in Fields

If you try to add a quote mark or a backslash as part of a field parameter or switch, you may be surprised at what you ...

Discover More

Moving Footnote References Using Find and Replace

When you are editing a document, you may need to modify where the author placed footnotes relative to surrounding ...

Discover More

Inserting a Document's File Location

Once you save a document on disk, it is stored in a particular folder (or location) on that disk. You may want that ...

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 nine less than 9?

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.