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: Centering a Table.

Centering a Table

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated January 15, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


By default, Word automatically left-justifies a table in your document. If you want to quickly center the table between the page margins, follow these steps:

  1. Right-click on the table. Word displays a Context menu.
  2. Choose Table Properties from the Context menu. Word displays the Table Properties dialog box.
  3. Make sure the Table tab is selected. (See Figure 1.)
  4. Figure 1. The Table tab of the Table Properties dialog box.

  5. Click on Center.
  6. Click on Close.

The above steps won't work if you are using Word 97. If that is the case, then you should follow these steps:

  1. Position the insertion point somewhere within the table.
  2. Choose Select Table from the Table menu. This selects the entire table.
  3. Choose Cell Height and Width from the Table menu. This displays the Cell Height and Width dialog box with the Row tab selected.
  4. Click on the Center radio button.
  5. Click on OK.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (1733) 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: Centering a Table.

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

Converting Endnotes to Regular Text

If you have a document with lots of endnotes, you may need them converted to regular text so that they can be used ...

Discover More

Setting Line Spacing in the Equation Editor

The Equation Editor can be a great boon when you need to include complex mathematical equations in your document. The ...

Discover More

Sorting Files

The Open dialog box allows you to sort the files it presents to you. How you do the sorting depends on the version of ...

Discover More

The First and Last Word on Word! Bestselling For Dummies author Dan Gookin puts his usual fun and friendly candor back to work to show you how to navigate Word 2019. Spend more time working and less time trying to figure it all out! Check out Word 2019 For Dummies today!

More WordTips (menu)

Table Header Rows after a Manual Page Break

Insert a manual page break into the middle of a table, and you may find that subsequent pages of the table don't always ...

Discover More

Transposing Table Contents

When you transpose information, it is essentially "rotated" in a direction. If you transpose the information in a table, ...

Discover More

Selecting Individual Cells in a Table

Many times before applying formatting or doing another operation, you need to select an individual cell in a table. ...

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 two minus 0?

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.