Headers and footers are the strips at the top and bottom of every page that repeat automatically, most often used for page numbers, titles or dates. By the end of this page you will be able to add both, insert page numbers properly, and make the first page look different from the rest.
A header is a strip of space at the very top of every page, and a footer is the same at the bottom. Anything you type into one appears, unchanged, on every page of the document - which is exactly why they are used for things like page numbers, a document title, or a date that should not need retyping on each page.
To get into a header or footer, go to the Insert tab and click Header or Footer, then choose a style from the gallery, or simply double-click near the very top or bottom of a page while working normally. Word greys out the main body text and lets you type in the header or footer area instead.
- Repeats at the top of every page
- Repeats at the bottom
- Inserts an updating number
Try it yourself
Go to Insert, click Header, and choose a simple style such as Blank.
This opens the header area at the top of the page and gives you a ready starting point, rather than an entirely empty box.
Type a short document title into the header.
Whatever you type here appears at the top of every page automatically, useful for identifying a printed document if pages get separated.
Go to Insert, click Page Number, and choose Bottom of Page, then a simple style.
This inserts an automatic page number into the footer, one that updates itself correctly even if you add or remove pages later.
While still in the header or footer area, tick Different First Page in the Header & Footer Tools tab that has appeared.
This lets you leave the first page, such as a title page, free of the header or footer that appears on every other page - common for reports and letters.
Double-click anywhere in the main body of the page.
This closes the header and footer area and returns you to editing your ordinary text, which greys out again to show it is no longer active.
Words people use
Headers and footers are a small piece of setup that saves a great deal of manual retyping, and give a document the tidy, consistent look of something prepared carefully rather than page by page.
Check yourself
If you can say yes to each of these, you are ready for the next lesson.
- I can add a header and type text into it
- I can insert an automatic page number rather than typing one by hand
- I can make the first page different from the rest using Different First Page
- I know how to close the header and footer area and return to normal editing