Ensuring the Width of a Table Column Doesn't Change

Ginger needs a table column to be exactly the same width in several different tables scattered throughout a document. She wonders if there is a reliable way to specify an exact column width without Word automatically changing the column's width when the table contents change.

There are two table-related settings that can affect whether Word changes column width. The first is the AutoFit setting, which applies to the entire table, and the second is the individual column widths. If you want to manually change these settings for a table, follow these steps.

1. Place the insertion point within a table.
2. Make sure the Table Layout tab of the ribbon is displayed.
3. Click on the AutoFit tool and then on Fixed Column Width.
4. Ensure that the insertion point is within the column whose width you want to specify.
5. Using the Width control in the Cell Size group, specify the width you want for that column.

Step 3 may not appear to do anything, but it actually affects the entire table, allowing specific column widths to be specified. Technically, the step turns off the option that allows the table to be automatically resized to fit its contents. It is then, in step 5, that you can reliably specify the desired column width.

You may be tempted, at some point, to click and drag on a column border to set a column width. For Ginger's purposes, this won't provide satisfactory results. Dragging a column border will affect two column widths simultaneously, not just one. It is better to exactly specify a column's desired width using the steps outlined above.

Understand that there can be instances when Ginger's desired column width can still be overridden by Word. For instance, if the cell contains a long string of text that cannot fit within the desired column width, Word may widen the column. Thus, there is no way to set a column's width in concrete so that it will never change, under any circumstances.

Since Ginger wants to affect multiple tables within the document, a macro may be the best approach. Here is a simple one that will affect just the table in which the insertion point is located:

Sub SetColumnWidth()
    Dim tbl As Table
    Dim colNum As Long
    Dim colWidth As Single

    'Specify the column number and desired width
    colNum = 2
    colWidth = InchesToPoints(1.25)

    'Make sure the insertion point is in a table
    If Not Selection.Information(wdWithInTable) Then
        MsgBox "Place the insertion point within a table " & _
          "and run the macro again."
        Exit Sub
    End If

    'Get the table containing the insertion point
    Set tbl = Selection.Tables(1)

    'Make sure the table has the specified column
    If tbl.Columns.Count < colNum Then
        MsgBox "The table does not contain column " & colNum & "."
        Exit Sub
    End If

    'Make table adjustments
    tbl.AllowAutoFit = False
    tbl.Columns(colNum).Width = colWidth
End Sub

If you run the macro and the insertion point is not within a column, it will not do anything. Otherwise, it goes through the two steps already discussed: It turns off AutoFit for the table and then sets the width of a specific column. You specify the desired column and width in the macro by changing what is assigned to colNum and colWidth, near the beginning of the macro.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (14008) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024, and Word in Microsoft 365.