Erin Wright Writing

Writing-Related Software Tutorials

How to Insert Page Breaks in Microsoft Word (PC & Mac)

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Casual interior scene with text overlay "How to Insert Page Breaks in Microsoft Word"A page break moves the content after the break to the next page in your document. This tutorial shows three ways to insert page breaks in Microsoft Word. We’ll also look at how to delete page breaks.

Quick Links:

Looking for information about section breaks? Please check out my other tutorial “How to Insert Section Breaks in Microsoft Word.”

This tutorial is also available as a YouTube video showing all the steps in real time.

Watch more than 100 other videos about Microsoft Word and Adobe Acrobat on my YouTube channel.

The images below are from Word for Microsoft 365. These steps will also work in Word 2019, Word 2016, Word 2013, and Word for Mac.

How to Insert Page Breaks in Microsoft Word

There are three ways to insert page breaks in Microsoft Word: (1) the Insert tab, (2) the Layout tab, and (3) the keyboard shortcut.

Recommended First Step: Select the Show/Hide button in the Home tab to show the formatting marks in your document, including page breaks.

Show/Hide button in Word 365
Figure 1. Show/Hide button

Insert a Page Break through the Insert Tab

  1. Place your cursor where you want to insert the break.
Cursor inserted for page break in Word 365
Figure 2. Cursor inserted for page break
  1. Select the Insert tab in the ribbon.
Insert tab in Word 365
Figure 3. Insert tab
  1. Select Page Break in the Pages group.
Page break button in Word 365
Figure 4. Page Break button

The content after the break should move to the next page in your document.

Insert a Page Break through the Layout Tab

  1. Place your cursor where you want to insert the break (see figure 2).
  2. Select the Layout tab in the ribbon.
Layout tab in Word 365
Figure 5. Layout tab
  1. Select Breaks in the Page Setup group.
Breaks button in Word 365
Figure 6. Breaks button
  1. Select Page in the drop-down menu.
Page break option in the Breaks menu in Word 365
Figure 7. Page (break) option
For information about Column breaks, please see “How to Create Newspaper-Style Columns in Microsoft Word.”

The content after the break should move to the next page in your document.

Insert a Page Break with a Keyboard Shortcut

  1. Place your cursor where you want to insert the break (see figure 2).
  2. Press the shortcut Ctrl + Enter (PC) or Command + Return (Mac) on your keyboard.

The content after the break should move to the next page in your document.

How to Delete Page Breaks

You can skip to step 2 if your formatting marks are already visible.

  1. Select the Show/Hide button in the Home tab to reveal the formatting marks (see figure 1).
  2. Place your cursor at the start of the page break.
Cursor at the start of a page break in Word 365
Figure 8. Cursor at the start of a page break
  1. Select the Delete key on your keyboard.
  2. Reselect the Show/Hide button to hide the formatting marks (see figure 1).

The page break should be deleted.

Related Resources

How to Insert and Delete a Blank Page in Microsoft Word

How to Insert Headers and Footers in Microsoft Word

How to Adjust Page Margins in Microsoft Word

How to Add Page Numbers in Microsoft Word

Updated May 23, 2021