Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021. 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 Your Entire Document Width.

Viewing Your Entire Document Width

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated March 20, 2021)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021


If you are creating wide documents, such as those you will print in landscape mode, then you may find yourself scrolling left and right within your document window all the time. For some people, this can be disturbing. One of the things you might try to overcome this disturbance is the following:

  1. Display the View tab of the ribbon.
  2. Click the Zoom tool, in the Zoom group. Word displays the Zoom dialog box. (See Figure 1.)
  3. Figure 1. The Zoom dialog box.

  4. Make sure the Page Width radio button is selected.
  5. Click on OK.

These actions cause Word to reduce (or increase) the magnification applied to your document so that the entire width of your document will fit on the screen at once. Depending on your document and the resolution of your monitor, this can be a nice tool to use.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (12945) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Viewing Your Entire Document Width.

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. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Applying Styles

Styles are a powerful formatting tool for the text in your documents. Once you've created styles that describe how you ...

Discover More

Specifying a Print Tray for a Worksheet

If you need to modify where a worksheet is printed (meaning, which paper tray it should use), Excel doesn't provide a lot ...

Discover More

Automatic Non-breaking Spaces in Dates

It drives some people crazy to have a date break across two lines. If you find yourself in this mindset, then you'll ...

Discover More

Discover the Power of Microsoft Office This beginner-friendly guide reveals the expert tips and strategies you need to skyrocket your productivity and use Office 365 like a pro. Mastering software like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint is essential to be more efficient and advance your career. Simple lessons guide you through every step, providing the knowledge you need to get started. Check out Microsoft Office 365 For Beginners today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Jumping to a Section

One way you can navigate through a document is to jump from section to section. Here's the traditional way to quickly get ...

Discover More

Making Word Remember My Settings

Ever had the experience of setting some configuration option in Word, only to have the option revert to a different ...

Discover More

Shortcut for Show/Hide

Hate to take your hands off the keyboard? Here's a handy keyboard shortcut you can use to display (or not display) the ...

Discover More
Subscribe

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.

What is five minus 4?

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.

Videos
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.