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: Deleting a Macro.

Deleting a Macro

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated October 24, 2025)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021

Many macros that you record or create are used for a specific purpose; they are not intended to be used over and over again for long periods of time. This means that as your needs change, you will have occasions to delete macros. To delete a macro, follow these steps:

Press Alt+F8. Word displays the Macros dialog box.
From the list of macros, select the macro you want to delete. The Delete button becomes available.
Click on Delete.
Repeat steps 2 and 3 for each macro you want to delete.
Click on Close when finished.

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 (13239) 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: Deleting a Macro.

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

Calculating the Distance between the Top of the Window and Row 1

Normally Excel positions a UserForm in the center of your screen. You may want to position the form elsewhere, more ...

Discover More

Roman Numerals for Page Numbers

Yes, Excel can work with Roman numerals, and it even provides a worksheet function that converts to them. How you use ...

Discover More

Jumping to the End of Page after Enter

Imagine you start typing in a new document, and when you press the Enter key the cursor jumps a huge distance to the ...

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)

Understanding Functions

Do some macro programming in VBA and you'll quickly find out that you can use functions to extend the power and ...

Discover More

Using Message Boxes

If your macro needs to communicate with a user, one simple way to do it is to use a message box. Here's how to use this ...

Discover More

Determining the Horizontal Position of the Insertion Point

Need to figure out how far the insertion point is from the left margin? You can do so by using this small macro 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 9 + 1?

2021-08-28 12:39:23

Tomek

@Ken said: >Only the macros that are attached to the current document can be deleted this way.
It does not seem to be the case. On my machine (MS365 Family, Win10) all macros in all currently opened documents and underlying templates can be deleted the way described.

However, if you need to delete many macros at once, it is faster to go to VBA editor, highlight them and delete them from there.

2021-08-28 09:04:32

Ken

Only the macros that are attached to the current document can be deleted this way. Macros that are in templates will appear in the list but cannot be deleted - the Delete button will be greyed out.

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.