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: Changing Caption Numbering Styles.

Changing Caption Numbering Styles

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated June 4, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365


If you use the captioning feature of Word, you can automatically number all your captions. For instance, all your tables and figures could be numbered using consecutive numbers. In addition, Word allows you to specify how you want the numbers to appear in the caption. To change numbering styles for your captions, follow these steps:

  1. Display the References tab of the ribbon.
  2. Click the Insert Caption tool, in the Captions group. Word displays the Caption dialog box. (See Figure 1.)
  3. Figure 1. The Caption dialog box.

  4. Click on the Numbering button. Word displays the Caption Numbering dialog box. (See Figure 2.)
  5. Figure 2. The Caption Numbering dialog box.

  6. Using the Format drop-down list, choose the format you want used for your caption numbers.
  7. Click on OK to close the Caption Numbering dialog box.
  8. Click on OK to insert your caption.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (13312) 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: Changing Caption Numbering Styles.

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

Moving a Chart's Legend

Need to move a chart legend to a different place on the chart? It's easy to do using the mouse, as described in this tip.

Discover More

Understanding Views

Need to display your worksheet in different ways? A quick way to do this is to create views, as described in this tip.

Discover More

Counting Jobs Completed On a Date

When you store the date and time in a single cell, it can be a bit confusing to count how many cells contain a particular ...

Discover More

Do More in Less Time! An easy-to-understand guide to the more advanced features available in the Microsoft 365 version of Word. Enhance the quality of your documents and boost productivity in any field with this in-depth resource. Complete your Word-related tasks more efficiently as you unlock lesser-known tools and learn to quickly access the features you need. Check out Microsoft 365 Word For Professionals For Dummies today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Deleting Caption Labels

Define a custom label to be used for captions, and you may later want to delete that label. Here's how you can easily ...

Discover More

Adding Captions

Need to add a caption after a document element such as a figure or table? You can add and format one manually, or you can ...

Discover More

Turning Off Automatic Captioning

Word can be configured so that it automatically adds captions to some of your design elements (tables, figures, etc.). ...

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 9 + 0?

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.