How to Delete a Page in Word Using a Keyboard Shortcut

To delete a page in Word on Windows, press Ctrl+G, type \page in the page-number box, press Enter, then Esc and Delete. This selects the current page’s contents so you can remove them quickly. Save your document first if the page contains anything you may need; for a stubborn blank page, you may need to remove a page break or paragraph mark instead.

What You’ll Need

Microsoft Word for Windows or Mac. The shortcut steps below are for the desktop app; Word for the web may handle the Go To command differently.
A document you can edit. If it is read-only or protected, you may need permission or to turn off editing restrictions before deleting content.
A saved copy or a recent save point if the document contains important formatting. You can undo an accidental deletion with Ctrl+Z on Windows or Command+Z on Mac.

Step-by-Step

Open the document and identify the page. Scroll to the page you want to remove. Click anywhere in its body text or other content so Word knows which page to target. The method selects the page containing the insertion point; it does not ask you to type the page number you want to delete. If the page is blank, click near its top or bottom and read the troubleshooting section below.
Open Go To. In Word for Windows, press Ctrl+G. The Find and Replace window opens with the Go To tab active. You can also use the ribbon: choose Home > Find > Go To. Depending on your Word window size, Find may appear as a magnifying-glass control or within the Editing group.
Enter Word’s page-selection command. Click the box labelled Enter page number, replace any existing text, and type \page exactly, including the backslash. This is a special Go To entry that selects the contents of the page where the cursor is currently located. It is not a page number and should not be replaced with a number such as 4.
Run the command and close the dialog. Press Enter to make Word select the page’s contents. Then press Esc to close the dialog and return to the document. You should see a highlighted selection in the document. If the selection is not on the page you intended, do not delete it; press Esc, click the correct page, and repeat the Go To steps.
Delete the selection. With the intended page contents highlighted, press Delete or Backspace. Word removes the selected text, images, tables, and other page content. The remaining document reflows, so later pages may move up and page numbers may change. Check the surrounding paragraphs and page layout before saving.
Check for leftover blank space or a blank page. If the page still appears, turn on formatting marks with Ctrl+Shift+8 on Windows, or use Home > ¶ Show/Hide. Look for a Page Break, Section Break, or extra paragraph marks. Remove only the mark that is causing the extra page, then turn formatting marks off again with the same shortcut or ribbon button.
Save and review the document. Press Ctrl+S on Windows or Command+S on Mac. Review the page before and after the deletion, especially if the document has headers, footers, section-specific page numbering, or carefully positioned images. If something changed unexpectedly, undo immediately before making other edits.

On a Mac: click in the target page, press Option+Command+G to open Go To, type \page, press Return, then press Esc and Delete. Keyboard mappings can vary with a customized layout or Word version. If that shortcut does not open Go To, use Word’s menu or ribbon and look for Find > Go To, then follow the same selection steps. On Mac, turn formatting marks on or off with Command+8.

Common Mistakes

Typing a page number instead of the command: In the Go To box, typing 4 jumps to page 4. It does not select that page for deletion. To select the page at the cursor, enter \page, including the backslash.

Deleting before checking the highlight: The command targets the page containing the insertion point, not necessarily the page you meant if the cursor was elsewhere. Confirm that the selection is on the right page before pressing Delete. If the page is long or contains tables, examine the highlighted area carefully.

Expecting a blank page to contain selectable text: A blank page is often created by invisible formatting, such as a manual page break, a section break, or an unavoidable final paragraph after a table. Selecting the page’s visible contents may not remove the cause. Show formatting marks and address the specific mark instead of repeatedly pressing Delete.

Removing a section break without checking its effect: A section break can control page orientation, margins, columns, headers, footers, and numbering. Deleting it may merge sections and change formatting beyond the page you intended to remove. If the break is needed, consider changing its type or adjusting nearby layout rather than simply deleting it.

Pressing Backspace after the selection has disappeared: Once you close Go To, the page contents should remain highlighted. If you click elsewhere first, the selection is lost and Backspace may remove only one character or affect another location. Repeat the selection steps if necessary.

Tips

Use the shortcut for a page with content, not as a page-management command. Word documents do not have fixed page objects in the same way a slide deck has slides. Pages are created by flowing text and layout rules. Removing a page usually means deleting its contents or correcting a break, after which Word repaginates the document automatically.

Keep a quick undo option ready. If deleting the selection pulls text from the next page upward, that is normal reflow. If it also removes content you wanted, press Ctrl+Z on Windows or Command+Z on Mac immediately. Then use a narrower selection or inspect the formatting marks before trying again.

For a deliberate page break, target the break itself. Turn on Show/Hide, click just before the Page Break label, and press Delete, or click just after it and press Backspace. The text that followed the break will move upward. Check the next few pages, because removing a break can change where paragraphs and headings land.

Be careful with tables at the end of a document. Word requires a paragraph after a table. If that final paragraph spills onto its own page, select its paragraph mark and reduce its font size or paragraph spacing rather than trying to remove the required mark. With formatting marks visible, click the mark after the table to apply a smaller font size or adjust spacing.

Use the desktop app for the most predictable shortcut. In Word for the web, Ctrl+G may open a navigation or Go To interface that does not behave like the desktop selection workflow. If entering \page does not highlight the page, open the document in the Word desktop app and use the steps above. You can still delete selected text manually in the web version.

Troubleshooting

Go To opens, but the page does not highlight. Make sure you entered the backslash followed by the word page, with no spaces: \page. Press Enter while the Go To box is active, then close the dialog with Esc. If you typed a page number, Word will navigate rather than select. Try again with the cursor placed within the target page first.

The wrong page is selected. Close the dialog without deleting anything, click inside the page you intend to remove, and repeat the command. If you are near a page boundary, click in a paragraph clearly within the page. Also check whether the page you see is actually part of a section with unusual page numbering; the displayed page number may differ from its position in the document.

The page remains after you delete its contents. Turn on formatting marks and inspect the page and the paragraph immediately before it. Delete an extra paragraph mark or manual page break if it is safe to do so. If you find a section break, first consider the formatting it controls. For a final blank page after a table, shrink the required final paragraph mark or adjust its spacing.

Deleting the break changes other pages. Undo the change and inspect the section break settings before proceeding. A Next Page section break can start a new section on a fresh page; removing it may join the sections and apply one section’s layout to the other. If you only need to remove the unwanted page, changing the break to Continuous may work when compatible with the document’s layout, but verify page orientation, columns, headers, and footers afterward.

The shortcut does not work on your Mac or in Word for the web. Use the menu or ribbon to open Go To rather than guessing another key combination. On Mac, try Option+Command+G; if it conflicts with your keyboard settings, open the Go To control from Word’s Find options. For Word for the web, use the desktop app if the \page command is not supported in the interface you see.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the shortcut to delete a page in Word?
On Windows, use Ctrl+G, enter \page, press Enter, then Esc and Delete. On Mac, use Option+Command+G to open Go To, then follow the same selection sequence.

Does this delete the page number or the whole page?
It selects and deletes the contents of the page, not just the printed page number in the header or footer. Because Word repaginates, the page number may change or disappear as the remaining content shifts. To remove a page number from a header or footer, edit that header or footer instead.

Can I delete a page by entering its number?
Entering a number in Go To takes you to that page; it does not select the page’s contents. Click inside the page you want, then use \page in the Go To box to select its contents.

Why is a blank page still there after I delete everything?
It may be held open by a page break, section break, extra paragraph mark, or the required paragraph after a final table. Turn on Show/Hide to identify the mark. Remove or adjust the cause carefully, since section breaks can control layout and formatting.

Can I undo deleting the page?
Yes. Immediately press Ctrl+Z on Windows or Command+Z on Mac to restore the deleted selection. If you have made many changes since, use Word’s version history or reopen a saved copy if available.

Will the shortcut work in Word for the web?
It may not select the page the same way it does in desktop Word. If Go To does not accept \page or highlight the contents, use the desktop app for the shortcut or select and delete the content manually in the browser.

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

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