Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 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: Moving to the Start or End of the Real Document.

Moving to the Start or End of the Real Document

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated April 10, 2021)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Microsoft 365


1

In other issues of WordTips you learn how to use the HomeKey and EndKey methods to move to the beginning or end of a document within a VBA macro. These work great, provided the insertion point is within the main body of the document when the macro is executed. It doesn't always work as expected if the insertion point is someplace else, however.

For instance, if your insertion point is located in a header or footer, then HomeKey and EndKey will result in moving to the beginning or end of the header or footer, not the entire document. To make absolutely sure you go to where you expect in the document, this means you need to use a different VBA approach. The following code line will take you to the beginning of the document, regardless of your insertion point location:

Selection.GoTo What:=wdGoToSection, Which:=wdGoToFirst

Likewise, to jump to the end of the real document you can use the following:

ActiveDocument.Characters.Last.Select
Selection.Collapse

The lack of elegance and symmetry between the two commands is unfortunate, but without knowing where the insertion point is located, these commands are safer than using HomeKey and EndKey alone.

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 (13315) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Moving to the Start or End of the Real Document.

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

Disabling the F1 Key

Tired of hitting the F1 key by mistake and pulling up the Help system? Here's a couple of ways (one drastic and one not ...

Discover More

Jumping to the Start of the Next Data Entry Row

Want a quick way to jump to the end of your data entry area in a worksheet? The macro in this tip makes quick work of the ...

Discover More

Saving Styles in a Macro

If you are trying to limit what styles can and can't be used in a document, you might think a good approach is to store ...

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 2013. Spend more time working and less time trying to figure it all out! Check out Word 2013 For Dummies today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Controlling the Bold Text Attribute

When processing a document in a macro, you may need to make some of your text bold. It's easy to do using the Bold ...

Discover More

Locating the My Documents Folder

Need to do some macro processing of documents in the user's My Documents folder? First step is to figure out where the ...

Discover More

Changing Directories in a Macro

When a macro works with files, it often has to change between different directories on your disk drive. This is done ...

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 two more than 7?

2021-04-11 01:30:08

Ken Endacott

A neater way is to use bookmarks that Word predefines.

Selection.GoTo What:=wdGoToBookmark, Name:="\EndOfDoc"

Selection.GoTo What:=wdGoToBookmark, Name:="\StartOfDoc"


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.