Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Word 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Word, click here: Making Wider Footer Margins.

Making Wider Footer Margins

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated April 7, 2018)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


Word provides you with complete control over how your margins are set in a document. You can even change margins in the middle of a page, if desired. You may be wondering how you can set different margins in a header or footer, however. Specifically, how can you set margins that result in a wider print area for a header or footer than for the main body of the document?

There are several approaches that you can use when solving this problem. The first (and perhaps the simplest) is to simply set the paragraph indents for the footer. Remember that paragraph indents are additive in relation to margins. Thus, if you have a one-inch left margin and you have a 0.2-inch paragraph indent, the effective margin (on the printed page) is 1.2 inches. Besides setting positive paragraph indents, Word also allows you to set negative paragraph indents. Thus, if you have a one-inch left margin and you set a –0.2-inch paragraph indent, the effective margin is now 0.8 inches. In other words, your footer is now 0.2 inches wider than the main body of your text.

Another potential solution is to place a text box in the header or footer area, making sure that the box extends into the normal margin area of the page. You can then place text within the text box as necessary. (You can format the text box so that its default border doesn't print, if desired.) If the text box is truly within the header or footer area, it is treated as a part of the header or footer and will repeat on every page, as configured.

A third solution is to place a single-row table in the header or footer. The width of the table can be adjusted so that it extends into the left and right margin area, just as you did for a text box. You can then remove the border around the table and insert your text, as desired.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (631) applies to Microsoft Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. You can find a version of this tip for the ribbon interface of Word (Word 2007 and later) here: Making Wider Footer Margins.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Problems Pasting Large Pictures

If you insert a large picture in your document and your text jumps all around and the picture seems to disappear, don't ...

Discover More

Deleting an AutoText Building Block

At some point you may want to delete an AutoText entry you previously created. Here's the steps to follow.

Discover More

Understanding the WinX Menu

Windows provides a special menu that allows you to easily access many common tools in the operating system. Here's the ...

Discover More

Do More in Less Time! Are you ready to harness the full power of Word 2013 to create professional documents? In this comprehensive guide you'll learn the skills and techniques for efficiently building the documents you need for your professional and your personal life. Check out Word 2013 In Depth today!

More WordTips (menu)

Determining a Column Width

When laying out your document, you may wonder what width you should use for your text. An old typographers trick may help ...

Discover More

Adding a Break to Your Document

Want to modify the way your text flows between pages in a document? Word allows you to insert several types of breaks ...

Discover More

Avoiding a Section Break Booby Trap

Section breaks got your document formatting all messed up? It could be because of the way you added the section breaks in ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 6 + 5?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


This Site

Got a version of Word that uses the menu interface (Word 97, Word 2000, Word 2002, or Word 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.

Videos
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.