In desktop Word, add a border around selected text or a paragraph with Home > Borders; add a page border with Design > Page Borders. To remove one, first identify what it belongs to: text, a page section, a table, an image, a shape, or a paragraph that looks like a horizontal line. Each uses a different control.
Choose the border control that matches the object
A border that looks like a box or line can be text or paragraph formatting, a page border, an object outline, or a table edge. Start by clicking or selecting the item. If the border is around text or a paragraph, use the Home tab. If it runs around the page, use Design. For a picture or shape, select the object and use its Format tab.
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- Text or paragraph: Home > Borders.
- Page: Design > Page Borders.
- Table: select the table and use its table-border controls; the specific ribbon path documented here is for Word for Mac.
- Picture: Picture Format > Picture Border.
- Shape or text box: Shape Format > Shape Outline.
- Horizontal rule: it may be a paragraph border rather than a separate line object.
Add a border around text or a paragraph
- Select the word, line, or paragraph you want to frame.
- Choose Home > Borders, then select a border from the gallery.
- For a custom border, open the Borders menu and choose Borders and Shading. Set the line style, color, and width, then use the Preview controls to choose which edges appear.
- Check Apply to. Choose Text to frame the selected characters, or Paragraph to frame the paragraph area.
Text and paragraph borders are different scopes: a paragraph border can extend across the paragraph area, while a text border follows the selected characters. If no text is selected, Word may offer only the Paragraph option. Ribbon labels can vary slightly by platform and release.
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Add a page border
- In desktop Word, choose Design > Page Borders.
- Choose a border setting, then customize its line style, color, width, or optional art.
- Select Options if you need to adjust the border’s distance from the page edge.
- Set Apply to to the intended page or section scope, check the preview, and select OK.
Remove a page border
- Choose Design > Page Borders.
- Under Apply to, select the page or section scope containing the border you want to remove.
- Choose None, then confirm.
Page borders are section-based, not freely assigned to any individual page. If you want a border on one page in the middle of a document, make that page its own section with section breaks, then apply the border to the appropriate scope. A “first page only” setting does not isolate a middle page; it applies to the first page of a section.
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Border just one page in the middle of a document
- Place the cursor at the start of the page to be bordered.
- Insert a section break before it using Layout > Breaks, then choose a section break such as Next Page.
- Place the cursor at the end of the target page and insert another section break so the page is separated from the following content.
- Click inside the page’s section, open Design > Page Borders, and set Apply to to that section.
- Use the preview to verify the border appears on the intended page, then select OK.
Section breaks control formatting scope, so check the section boundary and the Apply to setting before confirming. Word’s ribbon arrangement may differ by platform or release.
Remove an unwanted line that will not delete
A horizontal line created by Word’s three-character shortcut is often the bottom border of an empty paragraph, not a drawing object. Pressing Delete on the visible line may not remove that paragraph formatting.
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- Click in the paragraph immediately above the line.
- Choose Home > Borders > No Border.
If the line is instead a selectable drawing line or connector, click it to select the object and press Delete.
Change borders on tables, pictures, and shapes
Table borders
For Word for Mac, select the table and use Table Design > Borders to choose which edges to apply. For a custom border, choose the line style, weight, and color first, then apply the desired edges. These ribbon directions are specific to the Mac workflow documented by Microsoft.
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Picture borders
Select the image and choose Picture Format > Picture Border to set the color, weight, or dash style. Choose No Outline to remove its outline. If a picture style or effect adds other visible framing, removing the outline alone may not remove that style or effect.
Shape and text-box borders
Select the shape or text box, then choose Shape Format > Shape Outline > No Outline to remove its outline. The same Shape Outline control is used for SmartArt elements covered by these instructions.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What Word for the web can and cannot do
Word for the web preserves text borders that were created in desktop Word, but it does not add, edit, or delete those borders. For a boxed text area in the web app, Microsoft suggests using a one-cell table as a possible workaround. Desktop Word’s text-border instructions cover Microsoft 365 and Word 2024, 2021, 2019, and 2016, including Mac editions; page-border instructions likewise cover those desktop versions. Exact tab names and placement can vary across platforms and releases.
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