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

Retrieving Worksheet Names

Want to grab the names of all the worksheets in a workbook? Here's how you can stuff all those names into the cells of a ...

Discover More

Centering a Paragraph with the Keyboard

Need a quick shortcut that you can use to center your paragraph between the margins? The answer is here.

Discover More

Automating a Two-Column Section

If you need to routinely apply two-column formatting in the middle of a document, you can automate the process by using a ...

Discover More

Create Custom Apps with VBA! Discover how to extend the capabilities of Office 365 applications with VBA programming. Written in clear terms and understandable language, the book includes systematic tutorials and contains both intermediate and advanced content for experienced VB developers. Designed to be comprehensive, the book addresses not just one Office application, but the entire Office suite. Check out Mastering VBA for Microsoft Office 365 today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Determining if Overtype Mode is Active

Your macro may need to determine if the user has overtype mode turned on. You can find out the overtype status easily by ...

Discover More

Accessing a Footnote Number in VBA

If you are working with a document that includes footnotes, you might use a macro to do some processing of that document. ...

Discover More

Macro Won't Limit Replacements to a Selection

When you are using Find and Replace under macro control, you can specify what you want it to do when the end of your ...

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 eight more than 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.