Dealing with an empty sheet in your document can be annoying, but fixing it is actually quite simple. Most of the time, these pages exist because of hidden formatting marks that you cannot see with the naked eye. To get rid of them, you just need to make those invisible marks visible using the Show/Hide button on your toolbar. Once you can see the empty paragraph symbols or page breaks causing the trouble, you simply highlight them and press the Delete key on your keyboard. This clears out the space instantly.
How to Get Rid of a Blank Microsoft Word Page – Step by Step
We have all been there, staring at a document that has an extra white sheet at the end that just refuses to disappear. The steps below will help you reveal the secret code behind your text so you can see exactly what is holding that space open. It is like putting on a pair of X-ray glasses for your writing software.
Step 1: Turn on the paragraph marks to see hidden symbols
You need to find the button that looks like a backwards P on your main toolbar.
It is located in the Paragraph group right in the middle of the Home tab at the top of your window. Clicking this button will make a bunch of strange dots and symbols appear all over your text. Do not worry, as these will not print out on paper.
Step 2: Locate the unwanted blank page in your document
Scroll down through your file until you find the big empty white space that is bothering you.
You will now likely see a bunch of those backwards P symbols running down the left side of that empty page. These are called paragraph markers, and they are acting like invisible ghosts taking up space. Sometimes you might see a dotted line that says “Page Break” instead.
Step 3: Highlight the markers or breaks on the empty page
Take your mouse cursor and click and drag to select all those black paragraph symbols on the blank page.
If there is a Page Break or a Section Break line, make sure you highlight that specific line as well. You want to select everything that is sitting on that white page. It should all turn gray to show that you have grabbed it.
Step 4: Press the delete or backspace key on your keyboard
Once you have those pesky symbols highlighted, simply hit the Delete key.
If you are on a Mac, you might need to use the Backspace key or hold down Function and Delete. The symbols will vanish, and the blank page should disappear right along with them. Your document will snap back up to fill the void.
Step 5: Check the very end of the document for stubborn tables
Sometimes a blank page at the very end is caused by a table that pushes a final paragraph mark onto a new sheet.
If deleting does not work, click that last paragraph mark and make the font size extremely small, like 1 point. This shrinks the invisible line enough so it fits on the previous page. It is a clever little trick that works almost every time.
Tips for Getting Rid of a Blank Page in Word
- Use the Navigation Pane to see a thumbnail view of all your pages, which makes it easier to spot exactly where the blank ones are hiding in long documents.
- Be very careful when deleting “Section Breaks” because removing them can mess up the formatting for the headers and footers in the rest of your file.
- If you cannot select a page break, try clicking right before it and pressing Delete, or clicking right after it and pressing Backspace.
- Convert your document to a PDF file only after you have fixed the spacing issues, otherwise the blank sheet will be stuck in your final published version forever.
- Double-check your printer settings before printing, as you can often just tell the printer to skip the last page if you are in a huge rush and cannot fix the file.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does a blank page appear in the middle of my text?
This usually happens because someone inserted a manual “Page Break” by accident. It forces the text to jump to the next sheet even if there is plenty of room left. Deleting that specific break marker fixes the issue immediately.
Can I delete a page by just pressing backspace?
Yes, but you have to know what you are deleting. If you just keep hitting backspace without turning on the paragraph marks, you might delete text you actually wanted to keep. It is safer to see the symbols first.
What if the blank page is caused by a table?
Microsoft Word requires a paragraph mark after every table. If your table goes all the way to the bottom of the page, that mark gets pushed to a new page. Making that mark’s font size “1” is the best solution.
Does the Show/Hide button change my document?
No, that button is just a view setting for your screen. You can turn it on and off as many times as you like without hurting your work. It is purely a tool to help you see formatting.
Why can I not delete the last page of my resume?
This is often due to extra “Enter” key presses that you made while typing. You essentially created a bunch of empty paragraphs at the bottom. Highlighting and deleting those empty lines will solve the problem.
Summary
- Turn on paragraph marks.
- Locate the blank page.
- Highlight markers or breaks.
- Press delete key.
- Check for end tables.
Conclusion
Formatting documents can sometimes feel like a battle against invisible forces. We have all spent way too much time trying to figure out why our file is five pages long when we only wrote four pages of text. It is one of those little digital annoyances that can ruin your focus when you are trying to finish a project. Learning how to see the hidden structure of your document gives you back control.
Once you understand that every blank space is actually filled with hidden characters, the mystery goes away completely. You stop guessing and start fixing the problem with precision. It saves you paper when you print, and it makes your digital files look much more professional when you email them to a boss or teacher. Nobody likes scrolling through empty white space to get to the end of a report.
Keep this simple technique in your back pocket for the next time you are polishing up a resume or an essay. It is a small skill that makes a big difference in the final presentation of your work. You no longer have to struggle with the question of how to get rid of a blank page in Microsoft Word. You can just click a button, find the culprit, and delete it for good.
Matthew Burleigh has been writing tech tutorials since 2008. His writing has appeared on dozens of different websites and been read over 50 million times.
After receiving his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Computer Science he spent several years working in IT management for small businesses. However, he now works full time writing content online and creating websites.
His main writing topics include iPhones, Microsoft Office, Google Apps, Android, and Photoshop, but he has also written about many other tech topics as well.