Headers and footers can be used to display information in the top and bottom margins
of your document.
They can include details like the author's name, page numbers, the date, and more.
To create your own header or footer from scratch, double-click the margin at the top or bottom
of your document.
This will "unlock" the header or footer area, so you can add whatever information you want.
You can also use the tools on the Design tab, which will appear on the right side of the
Ribbon.
When you're done, you can close the header or footer using the button here, or by pressing
Esc on your keyboard.
If you don't have a lot of experience with headers and footers, you might want to start
with a preset instead.
Preset headers and footers give you several different designs to choose from, so they're
a great choice for any document.
To add a preset header or footer, go to the Insert tab... then click the command that
you want.
In this example, I'm going to add a header.
You can choose one of the simple options at the top, or scroll down for something more
unique.
Notice how we have access to the Design tab again.
For now, I'm just going to enter my information into the box here, which is known as a content
control field.
If we close the header, we can see what it looks like compared to the rest of the document.
To edit it again, you'll need to unlock it by double-clicking the margin.
I forgot that I wanted to include the date, maybe right here below the document title.
To add this to your document, just click Date & Time on the Design tab... then choose how
you want the date to appear.
If you want the date to be updated every time you open the document, check the box next
to "Update automatically."
This is good if you want to show the date the document was printed, instead of the date
it was created.
Otherwise, leave the box unchecked... and it will remain at today's date.
Let's take a look at page numbers next.
The header I chose doesn't have them, but they're really easy to add.
Just place your cursor where you want the page numbering to go.
In this example, I'm going to press the Tab key until I reach the tab stop on the right.
Next, click the Page Number command... and make your selection from the menu.
Top of Page and Bottom of Page will replace your current header or footer with whatever
option you choose.
Sometimes that's what you want, but in this case, I'm trying to add page numbers to the
header I already have.
For that, we can choose Page Margins or Current Position... and now we have page numbers on
each page of the document.
If you need to restart your numbering partway through your document, there is a way to do
this.
You can even apply a different numbering style.
You just have to insert a section break first.
In this example, I want to restart the numbering at page 1 for the Works Cited section.
So I'm going to place my cursor at the beginning of the section... then go to the Page Layout
tab.
From here, click the Breaks command... and choose Next Page from the menu.
Now we can adjust our page numbering by following these steps.
First, double-click the header or footer, which should take you back to the Design tab.
Then click the Page Number command... and choose Format Page Numbers from the menu.
A dialog box will appear where you can change the number format, add chapters to your page
numbering, and more.
But to restart your numbering, all you have to do is select the field that says Start
at:.
By default, it will restart at 1.
However, you can enter any number, depending on what you need.
When you're done, click OK... and you'll see the change immediately.
There are still lots of other things that you can do on the Design tab.
For example, if you want to hide the header or footer on the first page of your document
(then start back up on page 2), you can select Different First Page.
If you want to remove the header or footer all together, just click the command you want...
then click Remove at the very bottom of the menu.
Headers and footers can be used in many different ways, whether you're working on a casual document,
or an academic paper.
They can make your information easier to reference, and also add a nice professional touch.