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: Understanding Footnotes and Endnotes.

Understanding Footnotes and Endnotes

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated May 4, 2024)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


Footnotes are referenced items that appear outside the main flow of the text in your document. Typically footnotes are used to cite a source or provide additional information about a quote or some such item within a document. Footnotes normally appear on each page of your printed document, at the foot (or bottom) of the page.

Endnotes are very similar to footnotes and serve the same general purpose. The difference is that endnotes do not appear at the bottom of each page, but at the end of each chapter of a book or at the end of the book itself.

Word allows you to create both footnotes and endnotes. You have complete control over placement and appearance of both of these note types in your document.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (1681) 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: Understanding Footnotes and Endnotes.

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. ...

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