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How to Single-Space a Word Document Without Changing Paragraph Spacing

Use Word’s Line Spacing Options to set text to Single while leaving paragraph Before and After spacing unchanged.
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To single-space text in Word while keeping the existing gaps between paragraphs, select the paragraphs, open Home > Line and Paragraph Spacing > Line Spacing Options, set Line spacing to Single, and leave Before and After unchanged. These are separate settings: line spacing controls distance between lines; Before and After control space around paragraphs.

Single-space selected paragraphs in Word for Windows

  1. Select the paragraphs you want to change. To select the entire document, click in it and press Ctrl+A.
  2. Go to Home > Line and Paragraph Spacing > Line Spacing Options.
  3. In the Paragraph dialog, set Line spacing to Single.
  4. Leave the current Before and After values as they are, then select OK.

Microsoft Support explains that line spacing controls the vertical space between text lines, while the Before and After fields set space around paragraphs: Change the line and paragraph spacing in Word.

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Use the same precise method in Word for Mac

Select the paragraphs, then choose Home > Line and Paragraph Spacing > Line Spacing Options. Set line spacing to Single and keep the existing values under Spacing > Before and After. The precise method is useful when the document contains custom paragraph gaps that must remain intact.

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Why “No Paragraph Space” may change the result

For a quick whole-document preset, Word offers Design > Paragraph Spacing > No Paragraph Space. Microsoft says this option overrides the current style set, so it may change paragraph gaps you intended to preserve. Use the Line Spacing Options dialog instead when preserving existing Before and After values matters.

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To return to a prior preset, open Design > Paragraph Spacing and choose Default or the style-set name shown there. Changing the preset back is not a guarantee that custom per-paragraph edits will be restored in every document.

Word for the web and mobile

Word for the web

Select the text and use Home > Paragraph > Line Spacing, then choose 1. Microsoft also documents paragraph gap controls at Layout > Spacing > Before/After, though exact controls can vary across web builds. If your version does not expose separate Before and After fields or Line Spacing Options, use desktop Word for the more precise operation. Word for the web cannot set the documented default line spacing; new documents revert to 1.15 line spacing.

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Word on iPad or iPhone

Microsoft documents line-spacing choices from 1.0 to 3.0 for iPad and iPhone, along with commands for adding or removing paragraph space in the mobile interfaces it describes. Those interfaces do not provide special numeric Before and After paragraph-spacing options. For a custom measured paragraph gap, use desktop Word’s separate controls.

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If paragraph spacing changes unexpectedly

  • Gaps between paragraphs remain: that is expected when you change only line spacing. Lines within each paragraph should be closer together while paragraph gaps stay the same.
  • Paragraph gaps disappear after using No Paragraph Space: choose the prior style-set option under Design > Paragraph Spacing, then use Line Spacing Options and change only Line spacing. Custom per-paragraph edits may not be restored by switching presets.
  • Some parts look different from others: select the affected paragraphs and inspect Line spacing, Before, and After separately. Different styles or paragraph formatting may account for the variation.
  • You actually want to change paragraph gaps: use Layout > Spacing > Before/After in Windows or web Word, or the Before and After fields in the desktop Paragraph dialog.

Microsoft lists its line and paragraph spacing instructions for Microsoft 365 and Word 2024, 2021, 2019, and 2016 on Windows and Mac, with web guidance also included. Ribbon placement and available controls can vary by platform and version.

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