How to Double Space in Word: A Fast Step-by-Step Guide

To double-space text in Microsoft Word, select it, then choose Home > Line and Paragraph Spacing > 2.0. To double-space an entire document, click in its text, select all with Ctrl+A on Windows or Command+A on Mac, and apply the same setting. Double spacing puts more vertical room between lines, which can make a document easier to read, review, or mark up. The steps below are for Word for Microsoft 365 on Windows; the Mac and web versions use similar ribbon commands.

What You’ll Need

A document open in Microsoft Word. These instructions apply to the desktop app; Word for the web has a similar Home tab, though the ribbon layout may differ slightly.
A keyboard or mouse to select text. If you use Word on a phone or tablet, see the troubleshooting notes because its compact ribbon can put spacing controls in a different place.

You do not need to install an add-in or change the font. Line spacing is a paragraph-formatting setting, so it can be changed independently of font size, typeface, and page margins.

Step-by-Step

Open the document and decide what to change. Double spacing can apply to a selected sentence, a group of paragraphs, or the complete document. If you only need to format one passage, identify its first and last words before selecting it. If the goal is to change all the main text, select the document text, but consider whether headings, footnotes, or other special sections should keep their existing layout.
Select the text. To format a passage, drag across it with the mouse, or click at its start, hold Shift, and click at its end. To select the whole document on Windows, click in the document body and press Ctrl+A. On Mac, use Command+A. If the insertion point is inside a table, Word may select only the table or its contents; click in ordinary body text before using the select-all shortcut if you intend to format the full document.
Open the Home tab. In the Word ribbon, click Home. Find the Paragraph group, which contains alignment, bullets, indentation, and spacing controls. If the ribbon is minimized, expand it by clicking a tab or using the ribbon display control so the formatting buttons are visible.
Open the line-spacing menu. Click Line and Paragraph Spacing in the Paragraph group. Its icon usually shows horizontal lines alongside vertical arrows. In the menu, choose 2.0. Word applies double line spacing to the selected text immediately. If text was not selected, the setting normally applies to the paragraph containing the insertion point, so select the intended range first when you want a predictable result.
Check the result in the document. Look at a few paragraphs, including a paragraph with wrapped lines. The gap between lines within a paragraph should be noticeably larger. Scroll through the changed section to make sure the setting was applied to all of the intended text and that you did not accidentally include a title, table, or other content that should remain single-spaced.
Save the change. Press Ctrl+S on Windows or Command+S on Mac, or use File > Save. If Word is saving to OneDrive, wait for the save or sync indicator to finish before closing the document.

Keyboard shortcut option: In Word for Windows, select the paragraphs and press Ctrl+2 to apply double line spacing. On Mac, select the paragraphs and press Command+2. Use the Home-tab menu if a shortcut does not work on your keyboard or if you want to confirm the selected spacing visually.

To set double spacing more precisely: Select the relevant text, then open the Paragraph dialog from the small dialog launcher at the bottom-right of the Paragraph group on the Home tab. In the Indents and Spacing tab, find Spacing, set Line spacing to Double, and confirm with OK. This dialog is useful if you also need to inspect spacing before or after paragraphs. On Mac, open the Paragraph settings from the Format menu or the paragraph controls on the Home ribbon; the exact dialog placement can vary by Word release.

In Word for the web, select the text and use Home > Line and Paragraph Spacing > 2.0 when that control is available on the ribbon. The layout is more compact than the desktop app, so the spacing button may be grouped with paragraph controls or tucked into a menu. The formatting itself is still ordinary Word line spacing, not a special web-only effect.

Common Mistakes

Changing paragraph spacing instead of line spacing. The spacing menu includes options that add space before or after paragraphs. Those create gaps between paragraphs, not double spacing between every line in a paragraph. Choose 2.0 for line spacing; use paragraph-before or paragraph-after settings only when you specifically want extra separation between paragraphs.
Formatting only the current paragraph. Clicking in a paragraph and choosing 2.0 may change only that paragraph. Select the full passage or use Ctrl+A/Command+A for the whole document before applying the setting.
Selecting only part of the document by accident. A partial selection can be easy to miss, especially when scrolling or selecting with a trackpad. Check that the highlighted area covers the full intended range before clicking the spacing control.
Assuming blank lines are double spacing. Pressing Enter repeatedly inserts empty paragraphs. That creates uneven gaps and can shift when text is edited. Apply 2.0 line spacing instead of inserting blank lines as a visual workaround.
Expecting the page count to stay the same. Double spacing increases the document’s height, so text may move onto later pages. This is expected. Avoid shrinking the font or margins just to restore the former page count unless the document requirements allow those changes.

Tips

Format only what the instructions require. Some assignments ask for double-spaced body text but expect single-spaced footnotes, block quotations, captions, or a title page. Select the body paragraphs rather than blindly applying the setting to every object in the file.
Use the Paragraph dialog for paragraph gaps. A document can be double-spaced and still have extra space after each paragraph. If it looks too spread out, inspect the Paragraph dialog’s Before and After values as well as Line spacing. Adjust only the settings needed; zero paragraph-after spacing is not a requirement for every document.
Use styles for consistent formatting. If a document uses styles such as Normal or Body Text, changing the line spacing in the style can keep similarly formatted paragraphs consistent. Right-click the style in the Styles gallery, choose Modify, and use the formatting controls to adjust paragraph spacing. Be cautious: modifying a style may change every paragraph that uses it.
Keep a copy before broad changes. If the document has complex formatting, save a separate copy before selecting everything. This makes it easy to compare the original layout and recover if the change affects tables, headings, or other sections unexpectedly.
Remember that “2.0” means double line spacing. It does not mean doubling the font size or adding a fixed amount of blank space after each paragraph. The visual gap depends in part on the font and its size, but the line-spacing setting remains the correct control.

Troubleshooting

The text still looks single-spaced. First select a paragraph and reopen Home > Line and Paragraph Spacing to see whether 2.0 is selected. If it is not, select the full intended text and apply it again. Also check that the correct document is open and that the selection did not disappear before you chose the menu item.

There are large gaps between paragraphs. The document may have both double line spacing and paragraph-after spacing. Select the affected paragraphs, open the Paragraph dialog, and review the Spacing values for Before and After. Reduce an unwanted paragraph gap there, while leaving Line spacing set to Double. Do not remove paragraph gaps automatically if a style or assignment calls for them.

Only some of the text changed. The selection probably did not include every paragraph, or some paragraphs use different formatting or styles. Select the missing section and apply 2.0 separately. For a document-wide change, click in the body text, use Ctrl+A or Command+A, and check the selection before applying the setting. Content inside headers, footers, text boxes, or certain tables may need to be selected and formatted separately.

The shortcut does something else or has no effect. Click in the document text first, select the target paragraphs, and try the ribbon menu instead. Keyboard shortcuts can be affected by keyboard layout, focus in a search box or side panel, or app differences. On Windows use Ctrl+2; on Mac use Command+2. In Word for the web, the ribbon command is a dependable alternative when the desktop shortcut is unavailable.

You are using Word on a phone or tablet. Tap to place the cursor, select the text, and open the formatting controls, often shown as an A or a pencil icon. Look for paragraph or line-spacing settings and choose 2.0 or Double. The exact taps vary by device, app version, and whether the ribbon is expanded. If the control is hard to find, open the document in Word for the web or desktop app, apply the setting there, and let the file sync.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does double spacing mean 2.0 in Word?
Yes. Choose 2.0 in the Line and Paragraph Spacing menu, or set Line spacing to Double in the Paragraph dialog. It spaces lines within paragraphs; paragraph gaps are a separate setting.

How do I double-space the whole document?
Click in the document body, press Ctrl+A on Windows or Command+A on Mac, and select Home > Line and Paragraph Spacing > 2.0. Inspect special sections afterward, because tables, text boxes, and headers may need separate formatting.

Can I double-space just one paragraph?
Yes. Click inside that paragraph or select its text, then choose Home > Line and Paragraph Spacing > 2.0. A paragraph setting usually applies to the whole paragraph even if you selected only some of its words.

What is the shortcut for double spacing?
Use Ctrl+2 in Word for Windows or Command+2 in Word for Mac, with the target text selected or the insertion point in the paragraph. If it does not work, apply the setting from the Home tab.

Why did double spacing increase my page count?
Double spacing uses more vertical space, so fewer lines fit on each page and the document may become longer. This is normal. Do not change margins, font size, or page size unless you are allowed to alter those settings.

Will the double spacing remain when I share the file?
Yes, when you save the document in a Word format such as .docx, line spacing is saved as paragraph formatting. A different app may display the page slightly differently, so check a PDF or the recipient’s required format if exact pagination matters.

Try it: the Date Difference Calculator: days, months, years and weekdays between two dates, with the DATEDIF formulas.

More in How-to basics

Sources: Function behaviour and menu paths: Microsoft Support documentation for Excel. Method & sources

Spotted an error in this guide? Let us know.