How to Delete an Unwanted Page in Word

To delete an unwanted page in Microsoft Word for Microsoft 365 on Windows, press Ctrl+G, type \page in the page-number box, press Enter, close the dialog, and press Delete. On a Mac, open Go To with Option+Command+G and use the same \page entry; if the page remains, look for a page break, section break, or empty paragraph causing it.

Delete a page with Word’s Go To command

Word does not have a universal button that removes a page while preserving everything around it. The dependable approach is to select the page’s contents and delete them, then remove any break or spacing that is keeping an empty page in the document. The Go To command can select the content on a particular page without requiring you to drag across text manually.

Click anywhere on the page you want to remove.
On Windows, press Ctrl+G. In the Find and Replace dialog, open the Go To tab if it is not already selected. On Mac, press Option+Command+G to open Go To.
Type \page in the page-number field and press Enter. Word selects the contents of the current page.
Close the dialog, check that the selection covers only what you intend to remove, and press Delete or Backspace.

This method is useful for a page filled with text, images, or a mixture of objects and text. It can also clear the visible contents of a page that appears blank because it contains hidden formatting marks. However, deleting the selected contents does not always remove the page itself: a manual break or a paragraph pushed onto a new page may remain. If that happens, display formatting marks and diagnose the cause rather than repeatedly pressing Delete.

First check whether the page is truly empty

A page that looks blank may contain a paragraph mark, a page break, a section break, or other nonprinting formatting. These marks do not normally appear on the printed page, but they can control where text starts and how the document is laid out. Showing them makes it easier to tell whether Word has an empty page or simply an invisible layout instruction.

On Windows, press Ctrl+Shift+8 to show or hide formatting marks. On Mac, press Command+8. You can also use the Show/Hide ¶ control on the Home tab. Paragraph marks appear as ¶, while manual page breaks and section breaks are labeled on the page when marks are visible. The marks are display aids; turning them on does not change the document’s printed appearance.

Before deleting anything, click in the blank page and inspect what appears. If you see a paragraph mark, it may be removable. If you see a page break, deleting that break may bring following text back onto the previous page. If you see a section break, pause and consider its formatting effects. This quick check is especially useful when the blank page is between two pages of otherwise continuous text.

Remove an extra paragraph or empty page

To remove an unwanted empty paragraph, click immediately before its paragraph mark and press Delete, or click after it and press Backspace. You can also select the mark and delete it. If the extra page disappears, the cause was the empty paragraph or its paragraph formatting. If a page remains, inspect the surrounding breaks and the spacing of nearby paragraphs.

A paragraph can move to a new page because its settings require it to stay with another paragraph or begin on a new page. To inspect these settings, click in the affected paragraph and open the Paragraph dialog from the Home tab’s Paragraph group. In the Line and Page Breaks tab, check options such as Page break before, Keep with next, and Keep lines together. These settings are often intentional for headings and captions, so change them only if they are responsible for the unwanted page and the layout should be allowed to flow differently.

Also check paragraph spacing. A large Space Before or Space After value can push a short paragraph onto the next page. Select the affected paragraph and use the Paragraph dialog to review spacing. Reducing spacing may solve the problem without deleting text or altering a section break.

Delete a manual page break

A manual page break is an instruction inserted to start the following text on a new page. With formatting marks on, Word displays a line labeled Page Break. Click immediately before that line and press Delete, or immediately after it and press Backspace. The text after the break should move upward if there is enough room on the preceding page.

If you want to insert a page break elsewhere rather than remove one, use Insert > Page Break or press Ctrl+Enter on Windows. On Mac, the shortcut is Command+Enter. These shortcuts create a deliberate break; they do not delete an existing one. When troubleshooting, make sure the cursor is on the correct side of the visible break before pressing a key, so you do not accidentally remove text.

A blank page at the end of a document can also be caused by more than one break or by paragraph formatting immediately after a break. After removing a manual break, check that the next paragraph has not retained a Page break before setting. If the page still appears, turn on formatting marks again and inspect the remaining content rather than assuming Word ignored the deletion.

Handle section breaks carefully

Section breaks divide a document into areas that can have different page setup or layout. Depending on the break type, sections can use different margins, page orientation, columns, headers and footers, or page-number settings. A section break may create a blank page, but deleting it can affect the layout beyond the page you are trying to remove.

With formatting marks visible, Word identifies section breaks by type, such as Next Page, Continuous, Even Page, or Odd Page. A Next Page break starts a new section on the next page. An Even Page or Odd Page break may intentionally leave a blank page so the next section begins on the specified side. In a report or book-style document, that blank may be part of the intended layout rather than an error.

If the break is clearly unnecessary, place the cursor just before it and press Delete, or just after it and press Backspace. Then review the pages on both sides. Check orientation, margins, columns, headers, footers, and page numbering, because removing a section boundary can change how adjoining content is formatted. If those settings matter, consider changing the break type or section layout instead of deleting the break outright. Save a copy before making a structural change to a long or carefully formatted document.

Fix the blank page after a table

Word documents must retain a paragraph after a table at the end of the document. If the table reaches the bottom of the page, that required paragraph can be pushed onto a new page and make it look as though Word has added an undeletable blank page. The paragraph mark may be the only visible item on that page.

Turn on formatting marks, select the paragraph mark after the final table, and reduce its font size, for example to 1 point. You can also set its paragraph spacing before and after to zero. The aim is to make the required paragraph small enough to fit on the page with the table, not to remove the paragraph itself. If the page remains, check the table’s size, the bottom margin, and the paragraph’s line spacing. Slightly reducing the table’s height or adjusting layout may be necessary.

This is different from deleting an ordinary empty paragraph. Repeatedly pressing Backspace at the end of a document will not remove Word’s required final paragraph after a table, and may instead alter the table or nearby content. Keep formatting marks visible until you can confirm where the paragraph is.

Choose the safest fix for the situation

The right method depends on what is actually on the unwanted page. A quick decision based on visible marks helps avoid removing content or changing document-wide layout by mistake:

The page contains text or objects: Use Go To with \page, verify the selection, and delete the selected content.
The page contains only a paragraph mark: Delete the extra paragraph, or adjust its spacing if it is being pushed onto a new page.
You see Page Break: Remove the manual break if the next text should flow onto the previous page.
You see Section Break: Check section layout and headers before removing it; the blank page may be intentional.
The page follows a table: Shrink the required final paragraph or adjust the table, rather than trying to delete that paragraph.

For a document with tracked changes or important formatting, consider saving a separate copy before making a change. Deleting text may also delete comments or tracked content attached to it, depending on the selection and review state. After the fix, inspect the surrounding pages and use Print Preview to confirm that the page count and layout are what you expect.

Common mistakes and ways to avoid them

One common mistake is selecting a page by dragging from its first line to its last. The selection can miss a final paragraph mark or include text from the next page, especially when the page contains tables or floating objects. Go To is usually more precise, but it is still worth checking the highlight before pressing Delete.

Another mistake is treating every blank page as a page-break problem. A blank page can result from a section break, paragraph settings, an odd- or even-page section start, or the final paragraph after a table. The visible formatting marks identify which situation you have. If the page is present only in the printed output, check Print Preview and page setup as well as the on-screen document.

Finally, avoid deleting a section break just because it is near the blank page. A section break may control landscape pages, different headers, or page-number restarts. If removing it makes the document look worse, press Ctrl+Z on Windows or Command+Z on Mac immediately to undo, then try a narrower fix. Once other edits have intervened, undoing may also reverse those later edits, so save a copy before experimenting.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I delete a blank page in Word that will not go away?
Show formatting marks with Ctrl+Shift+8 on Windows or Command+8 on Mac. Look for an empty paragraph, page break, section break, or the required paragraph after a final table. Remove or adjust the cause rather than repeatedly pressing Delete.

Can I delete a page in Word without deleting the text on other pages?
Yes. Click on the target page, use Go To with \page, and inspect the selection before deleting. If the page is blank, remove only the specific break or paragraph responsible. Then check the pages immediately before and after it.

Why does Word add a blank page after a table?
Word keeps a paragraph after a table at the end of a document. If the table fills the page, that paragraph may spill onto another page. Reduce the final paragraph’s font size or spacing, or make the table slightly shorter; do not try to delete the required paragraph.

Does deleting a section break change formatting?
It can. Section breaks separate settings such as orientation, margins, columns, headers, footers, and page numbering. Review the surrounding sections after deleting one, and undo if the layout changes unexpectedly.

Is there a Delete Page button in Word?
Word’s standard desktop interface does not provide a general Delete Page command. The usual method is to select the page’s contents with Go To and delete them, then remove any remaining break or formatting that is generating an empty page.

Check the document after deleting the page

Once the unwanted page is gone, turn off formatting marks if you prefer the normal editing view and review the surrounding pages. Confirm that headings remain with the right text, tables and images have not shifted awkwardly, and section-specific headers or page numbers still behave as intended. If the document will be printed or shared as a PDF, check Print Preview or export a PDF and confirm that the final page count matches your expectation.

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