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: Using Only Odd Page Numbers.

Using Only Odd Page Numbers

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated February 13, 2021)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


Daniyal has some documents that he files in court, and those documents must have only odd page numbers on them. This doesn't mean that there should only be page numbers on the odd pages, but that the number on each page should only be odd. Thus, the pages would be numbered 1, 3, 5, 7, etc.; there would be no pages 2, 4, 6, 8, etc.

The easiest way to accomplish this task is to use a compound field to create your page numbers. The PAGE field is normally used to add page numbers to a document, as shown here:

{ PAGE \* MERGEFORMAT }

You should modify the field so that it looks like this:

{ = { PAGE } * 2 - 1 }

Note that each pair of field braces is inserted by pressing Ctrl+F9. When you are done constructing the field code, you can collapse it by using pressing F9.

If you use these types of calculated page numbers quite often, you can select the collapsed field and assign it to an AutoText entry. That way you can insert it into any of your documents you desire.

You should also note that if you create a table of contents or an index for the document, page numbers in the TOC or index will still reflect the normal page range, including even numbers, instead of the calculated numbers. There is no way to get around this limitation.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (3862) 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: Using Only Odd Page Numbers.

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 Numeric Values to Times

If you have a bunch of times entered into cells without the colon between the hours and minutes, chances are good that ...

Discover More

Not Selecting Images when Selecting Text

When selecting text in a document that contains images, it is important to understand the relationship of those images ...

Discover More

Forcing the Date to the Next Wednesday

Working with today's date in Word is easy. Trying to manipulate dates to come up with a future one can be an entirely ...

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)

Odd Page Numbers Disappearing

Page numbers in printed pages are often a necessary part of formatting a document. What do you do if your printed output ...

Discover More

Adding Page Numbers in Headers or Footers

While Word has a default format for page numbers, you can design and specify how you want them to appear in your ...

Discover More

Page Numbers are Zeros

If you have a document where the page numbers are always zero, you may be rightly wondering what is happening. This tip ...

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 2 + 8?

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.