How to Set Up Pages in Word: Margins, Breaks, Headers, Footers, and Page Numbers

A short letter fits on one page without much thought. Once a document runs to several pages, like a handbook or a study guide, the page itself needs attention: margins, where each page starts, and a header, footer and page numbers so readers always know where they are.

In this tutorial you will set up a 3-page Tutoring Club handbook. You will set its margins and paper size, replace stacks of empty lines with real page breaks, and add a header, a footer and page numbers that stay correct as the handbook grows.

Set the margins

Margins are the blank space between the edge of the paper and your text. Change them for the whole document with Layout› then Page Setup› then Margins and pick a preset. Word changes every page at once.

For exact numbers, choose Layout› then Page Setup› then Margins› then Custom Margins. The Page Setup dialog opens on its Margins tab, where you can type the top, bottom, left and right margins. Leave Apply to set to Whole document. To use your settings for every new document, click Set As Default.

Choose orientation and paper size

Layout› then Page Setup› then Orientation switches between Portrait (tall, the normal choice) and Landscape (wide, good for a big schedule or a poster). It changes every page in the document.

Layout› then Page Setup› then Size sets the paper size. The two you'll meet most are:

A4 is a little narrower and taller than Letter. If you send a handout to family in Korea, or receive one from a school abroad, check the size before printing so nothing gets cut off or shrunk. For other sizes, such as a half-page flyer, choose More Paper Sizes at the bottom of the Size menu.

Start a new page with a page break

To start a chapter on a new page, many people press Enter until the cursor reaches the next page. It works until you add or delete one line above it: then every heading after it slides down or up, and pages start in the wrong place.

Instead, click where the new page should start and press Ctrl+Enter, or choose Insert› then Pages› then Page Break. Everything after that point moves to the top of the next page, and it stays there however much you add or delete above it.

To remove a page break, turn on Home› then Paragraph› then Show/Hide ¶, click on the Page Break line and press Delete. This is also how you track down a mystery blank page: it is usually a stray page break or a pile of empty paragraphs.

Add a header and footer

The header is the area in the top margin and the footer is the area in the bottom margin. Whatever you put there repeats on every page: the document title, the club name, a date, page numbers.

1. Choose Insert› then Header & Footer› then Header and pick a simple design such as Blank, or choose Edit Header at the bottom of the menu.
2. Type the text, for example Tutoring Club Handbook. Format it as you would any text: a smaller size and gray color keep it quiet.
3. To put something at the right side, such as Fall 2026, press Tab twice. Headers come with a center and a right tab stop already set.
4. Click Go to Footer on the Header & Footer tab, or scroll down, and type the footer text.
5. Click Close Header and Footer, press Esc, or double-click the body of the page.

The fastest way back in is to double-click the top or bottom margin of any page. The body text turns pale while you edit the header, and the header turns pale when you go back to the body. That's normal: it shows which part you are editing.

Add page numbers

Never type page numbers by hand. Choose Insert› then Header & Footer› then Page Number, point to Bottom of Page (or Top of Page), and pick a position. Word inserts a number that updates itself on every page.

For Page X of Y, such as Page 2 of 3, scroll down the Bottom of Page gallery to the Page X of Y designs. Both numbers update as pages are added. You can also type your own footer text first, then choose Insert› then Header & Footer› then Page Number› then Current Position and pick a Page X of Y design there, so the text you typed stays.

Change the style or start number with Insert› then Header & Footer› then Page Number› then Format Page Numbers:

• Number format: 1, 2, 3, i, ii, iii, a, b, c and more.
• Start at: begin at a number other than 1.

No number on the cover. Double-click the header or footer, then check Different First Page on the Header & Footer tab. The first page now has its own, empty header and footer, while the other pages keep theirs. If you want the page after the cover to show 1, also set Start at to 0 in Format Page Numbers.

Check the whole layout

Headers, footers and margins only show properly in Print Layout (View› then Views› then Print Layout), so make sure you're in it. Then step back and look at whole pages, not single lines.

Use View› then Zoom› then One Page to check one page at a time, and Multiple Pages to see the handbook side by side. Look for:

• each chapter starting at the top of a page;
• no nearly empty pages and no blank page at the end;
• the header and footer on every page except, if you chose it, the first;
• page numbers that run in order, and a total that matches the status bar.

When it all looks right, return to 100% with View› then Zoom› then 100%. You'll preview the printed result once more in Tutorial 7 before you print or save a PDF.

Common mistakes

Practice