Word guide

Create a table of contents

To create a Word table of contents, apply heading styles first and then insert an automatic table of contents from the References tab.

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Environment

Word for Windows

Fast answer

Apply heading styles on Home, then insert an automatic table of contents from References > Table of Contents.

1
Apply heading styles
Select each heading you want in the table and apply Heading 1 or Heading 2 from the Home tab.
2
Place the cursor where the TOC should go
Usually this is near the beginning of the document.
3
Insert the table of contents
Open Table of Contents on the References tab and choose an automatic option.
4
Update it when needed
When headings or page numbers change, click the table and run Update Table.

Bold text alone does not appear in the table of contents. Use heading styles.
If you do not update the table after editing, entries and page numbers stay outdated.

Find

Ctrl + F

Find text in the document.

Replace

Ctrl + H

Replace found text with another value.

Bold

Ctrl + B

Make the selected text bold.

Insert page numbers

Insert page numbers into the header or footer.

Edit headers and footers

Edit the repeating information at the top or bottom of the document.

Insert a page break

Start the next content on a new page.

Usually the heading does not have a Heading 1 or Heading 2 style. Manual formatting alone is not enough.

Click the table and choose Update Table. If headings changed, update the entire table.