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: Quickly Removing Table Borders.

Quickly Removing Table Borders

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated April 23, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365


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When you insert a table in Word, it automatically adds a border around the cells in the table. For many purposes, you may not want the borders. There are many different ways to get rid of the borders, but perhaps the simplest is to simply press Ctrl+Alt+U right after inserting the table. (After you insert the table, the insertion point is typically within a cell of the table. If it is not, you should make sure you place the insertion point within the table before pressing Ctrl+Alt+U.)

It is important to note that the Ctrl+Alt+U shortcut removes all formatting from the table—not just the borders. If you want to remove the borders but keep other formatting in your table, select your whole table and choose No Borders from the drop-down list on the Borders tool in the Borders group on the Table Design tab of the ribbon.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (13133) 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: Quickly Removing Table Borders.

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. ...

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