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: Last-Row Border Formatting.

Last-Row Border Formatting

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated November 26, 2016)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


Subscriber Smokey Lynne Bare recently wrote about a problem encountered with formatting a table in Word. The table was formatted so the outline border used double lines, and the inside borders used single lines. Everything looked fine until the table extended to a second page. Then, the last line of the last row on the first page didn't switch to a double line, instead remaining a single line.

Before getting into how you can fix this, you should first make sure that you are looking at the table in the proper manner. If you look at the table in Normal view, it won't appear that the table is outlined properly at the page break. Instead, you must view the document in Page Layout view, or in Print Preview. In both of those views you should see the proper outline on the table.

If you still don't, then follow these steps:

  1. Position the insertion point anywhere within the table.
  2. Choose Borders and Shading from the Format menu. Word displays the Borders and Shading dialog box.
  3. Make sure the Borders tab is selected. (See Figure 1.)
  4. Figure 1. The Borders and Shading Dialog Box

  5. Make sure the Apply To drop-down list is set to Table.
  6. Click on the None option. This removes any existing borders from the table.
  7. In the Style list (that shows all the line styles), make sure a single line is chosen.
  8. In the Preview area, click on the two internal lines, making sure that the line appears both horizontally and vertically.
  9. In the Style list, choose a double line.
  10. In the Preview area, click on the four outside lines, one at a time. When finished, the Preview area should be outlined using the double line, but have the single line used for the two internal lines.
  11. Click on OK.

Now, when you view a multi-page table using Page Layout view or Print Preview, the table should be outlined in double lines on each page where the table appears. Only the interior lines should be single. If, for some reason, your table still doesn't behave in the described manner, it could be related to your printer driver. Make sure you have the most current driver for your printer, and try again.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (878) 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: Last-Row Border Formatting.

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

Unhiding Multiple Worksheets

You can hide a bunch of worksheets at the same time, but Excel makes it impossible to unhide a bunch at once. You can, ...

Discover More

Changing the Default Document Format

f you don't want Word to store documents using its default document format, it is an easy task to specify a different ...

Discover More

A Shortcut for Switching Focus

While not technically an Excel-only tip, the shortcuts described in this tip will help you switch focus from your ...

Discover More

Create Custom Apps with VBA! Discover how to extend the capabilities of Office 2013 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Access) with VBA programming, using it for writing macros, automating Office applications, and creating custom applications. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2013 today!

More WordTips (menu)

Applying Consistent Shading to a Table

Formatting tables can be very time consuming. When you get a document from another person, you can spend a lot of time ...

Discover More

Changing Cell Alignment

Individual cells in a table can be aligned any way you desire. As pointed out here, just select the cell and apply the ...

Discover More

Changing Spacing Between Table Cells

Need to adjust the space between individual cells in a table? Word gives you a good deal of control over this spacing, as ...

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 7 - 7?

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.