Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated November 13, 2021)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021
When working with tables, it is not uncommon to cut rows from one table and paste them into another. The result of such actions may not be what you expect, however. The pasted rows—even if they have the same number of columns as the target table—may look "out of balance," with the cell borders not lining up with the row now above or below it.
There are a couple of ways you can fix this situation. The first solution involves making a change to how you actually paste the rows into the target table. Try this the next time you want to do the pasting:
Figure 1. What to select in the table.
If you follow this process, then the content from the source table is copied into cells in the target table. New rows are created, as necessary, and these rows have the same cell widths as the other rows in the table.
There is one gottcha here. Notice that this technique involves adding a blank row at the end of the table (step 2). This is because when you paste into the last row, Word automatically adds as many rows as you need. If you want to paste the source information in some other location within the table, then you may end up overwriting information already in the table—unless you add enough blank rows to accommodate the data that will be pasted into the table.
If you are working with a table that already has messed-up column widths on individual rows, then you obviously cannot use the above technique. Instead, you may want to use the AutoFit feature of Word. Follow these steps:
If desired, you can also use AutoFit by just double-clicking on the left border of the table. This approach affects any columns that contain information but doesn't change the width of any empty columns.
Another approach is to do a table-to-text-to-table conversion process, which ends up in allowing Word to define new column widths. Follow these general steps:
Finally, if you have quite a few tables with messed-up column widths, you can create a macro that will go through and essentially perform an AutoFit on each table in the document.
Sub AutoFitAllTables() Dim oTbl As Table For Each oTbl In ActiveDocument.Tables oTbl.Columns.AutoFit Next oTbl End Sub
Note:
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (13245) 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: Differing Column Widths when Pasting.
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 2013. Spend more time working and less time trying to figure it all out! Check out Word 2013 For Dummies today!
Headings on a table are very important when it comes to understanding what is in the table. This tip explains an easy way ...
Discover MoreYou can format your tables to either keep cell sizes static or to automatically resize based on cell contents. By ...
Discover MoreWhen working with tables, a common editing task is to combine two tables into one. Sometimes, though, you may run into ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)
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.
Visit the WordTips channel on YouTube
FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
Copyright © 2025 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
Comments