How to Double Space a Paper in Word on Windows and Mac

To double space a paper in Microsoft Word, select the text you want to change, then choose Home > Line and Paragraph Spacing > 2.0. To format the whole paper, click in the document and press Ctrl+A on Windows or Command+A on Mac first. Double spacing adds space between lines of text, making a paper easier to read, annotate, and review. Before you start, check whether your assignment requires double spacing throughout or only in the main text.

What You’ll Need

A paper open in Microsoft Word for Microsoft 365 on Windows or Mac. The steps are similar in recent desktop versions of Word.
Your assignment or style instructions, if you have them. They may specify margins, font, paragraph spacing, or whether headings and references should also be double spaced.

Step-by-Step

Open your paper and check that you can edit it. Open the document in the Word desktop app. If a yellow or red banner says the file is in Protected View, choose Enable Editing only if you trust the file and need to make changes. If Word shows Read-Only, use File > Save As to make an editable copy. This prevents you from changing a file that cannot be saved.
Decide what should be double spaced. If the instruction applies to the entire paper, you can select all the text. If it applies only to the body, select just the paragraphs that make up the body. Your title page, footnotes, block quotations, captions, or bibliography may have separate requirements, so follow the assignment sheet or style guide rather than assuming every part must match.
Select the text to format. To select the main document text on Windows, click in the document and press Ctrl+A. On Mac, press Command+A. You can also drag across a specific passage or click at its beginning, then hold Shift and click at its end. Check the selection before proceeding: applying spacing with only one paragraph selected will not change the rest of the paper.
Open the line-spacing menu. Go to the Home tab on the ribbon. In the Paragraph group, select Line and Paragraph Spacing. The control usually looks like horizontal lines with up-and-down arrows beside them. If the Word window is narrow, the Paragraph controls may be compressed or shown as icons; maximize the window or look for the same line-spacing symbol.
Choose 2.0. In the menu, click 2.0. Word applies double line spacing to the selected paragraphs. On many Windows keyboards, you can use the shortcut Ctrl+2; on Mac, use Command+2. The ribbon menu is a good choice if you want to confirm the setting visually or if your keyboard shortcut is intercepted by another app.
Check the paragraph spacing separately. Line spacing controls the distance between lines within a paragraph. Paragraph spacing controls the extra gap before or after whole paragraphs. If your paper now has noticeably large blank gaps between paragraphs, select the text again, open Home > Line and Paragraph Spacing, and choose Remove Space After Paragraph if that option is available. You can also open the Paragraph settings described in the next step and set the paragraph spacing to zero if your instructions call for that.
Use the Paragraph dialog for precise settings. If you need to verify the exact values, select the text and open the Home tab. In the Paragraph group, click the small diagonal arrow in the lower-right corner to open the Paragraph dialog. Under Spacing, set Line spacing to Double. Check Before and After as well: use the values your assignment requires, or set them to 0 pt if it explicitly calls for no extra paragraph spacing. Click OK to apply the settings.
Review the entire document. Scroll from the first page to the last. Look for sections that stayed single spaced, unexpected gaps between paragraphs, headings that became too far apart, or text that moved onto a new page. If something is wrong, select the affected part and apply the correct spacing to that selection rather than changing unrelated text.
Save the formatted paper. Press Ctrl+S on Windows or Command+S on Mac. If the file is stored in OneDrive, wait for the save or sync indicator to finish before closing Word. For a submission copy, use File > Save As if you want to keep the original version unchanged.

On Mac: Word for Mac uses the same basic ribbon route: select text, open Home > Line and Paragraph Spacing, then choose 2.0. The common selection and spacing shortcuts use the Command key instead of Ctrl: Command+A selects all, Command+2 applies double spacing, and Command+S saves. Ribbon labels can vary slightly with the app version or window size, but the Paragraph group contains the line-spacing control.

In Word for the web: Open the document in editing mode, select the text, and use the Home tab’s Line and Paragraph Spacing menu to choose 2.0. If the web ribbon is simplified, expand the ribbon or look in the Paragraph controls. Some advanced Paragraph dialog options may not be available in the browser; open the file in the desktop app if you need to set exact Before and After values or troubleshoot a complicated layout.

Common Mistakes

Changing only the current paragraph. Word generally applies a spacing choice to the selected text. If there is no selection, it may affect only the paragraph where the cursor is. Select the intended text first, then check more than one page to confirm the change applied.
Confusing line spacing with paragraph spacing. Double spacing does not necessarily remove extra space between paragraphs. A document can have double-spaced lines plus a large After value, which creates gaps that look like blank lines. Check both controls when the page seems too open.
Pressing Enter to make the page look double spaced. Adding empty paragraphs is not the same as changing line spacing. It can create uneven gaps, make editing harder, and affect page breaks. Remove the extra paragraph marks and use the 2.0 setting instead.
Assuming every element has the same requirements. A teacher or publisher may want the title, footnotes, table text, or reference list formatted differently. Verify the directions before applying a whole-document change.
Forgetting that selection matters. Ctrl+A or Command+A works when the document body is active, but it may select content in a table, text box, or other area instead if your cursor is there. Click in ordinary body text before selecting all, and inspect the result afterward.

Tips

Use the shortcut for a quick change. With the text selected, Ctrl+2 on Windows or Command+2 on Mac applies double line spacing. If you are unsure what is selected, use the ribbon so you can see the available spacing choices.
Format before fine-tuning page breaks. Double spacing increases the height of the document and may move paragraphs to later pages. Apply the required spacing before adjusting page breaks, page numbers, or other layout details.
Use the status bar as a rough check, not proof. The page count may increase after spacing changes, but page count depends on font, margins, paper size, and paragraph settings too. A higher page count alone does not confirm the document is double spaced.
Keep a clean original when appropriate. If you might need to compare versions, save a copy before making major formatting changes. This is especially helpful when the file contains carefully formatted tables, citations, or section breaks.
Apply a consistent setting to future text. If you are starting a new paper, set spacing after writing or configure the document’s style before typing. To change the default for a particular document, adjust the relevant style, such as Normal, rather than adding blank lines between paragraphs. Be cautious about changing Word’s global defaults if you only need one assignment formatted this way.
Use Print Preview before submitting. Choose File > Print to review how the pages will look. You do not need to print: the preview can reveal crowded headings, a short final page, or an unintended blank page caused by the changed layout.

Troubleshooting

Only some of the paper changed. Select the remaining text and choose 2.0 again. If you are trying to select everything, click in the main document body first, then use Ctrl+A or Command+A. Text inside headers, footers, text boxes, or some shapes may need to be selected and formatted separately. Tables can also contain paragraphs with their own formatting; click inside the table and check those cells if they did not change.

The document still looks single spaced. Confirm that the text is selected and that the menu shows 2.0, not 1.0 or 1.15. Open the Paragraph dialog and verify that Line spacing is set to Double. If the text is in a text box, table, or a style with unusual formatting, select that content and apply the setting directly. Also check that you are viewing the document in Print Layout or another view that displays page formatting clearly.

There is too much space between paragraphs. Double line spacing and paragraph-after spacing are separate settings. Select the affected paragraphs, open the Paragraph dialog, and inspect After. If your assignment wants no added paragraph gap, set Before and After to 0 pt; if it specifies a value, use that instead. Avoid deleting paragraph marks just to close gaps, since that can merge separate paragraphs.

The page count changed more than expected. This is normal when double spacing adds height, but check for unintended blank paragraphs, large Before or After values, and extra spacing around headings. Review page breaks and section breaks as well. Do not shrink the font or margins merely to restore the old page count unless your instructions allow those changes.

The setting will not stick. If the document uses styles, a style may be reapplying its own paragraph settings. Select a paragraph that looks wrong, check which style is shown on the Home tab, and adjust the paragraph directly or update that style as appropriate. If the file is shared or protected, confirm you have editing permission. Saving a copy under a new name can help distinguish a permission issue from a formatting issue.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the keyboard shortcut for double spacing in Word?
On Windows, select the text and press Ctrl+2. On Mac, select the text and press Command+2. Use the Home tab’s line-spacing menu if the shortcut does not work in your setup.

Does double spacing mean adding a blank line after every sentence?
No. Double spacing increases the distance between lines within paragraphs. Do not press Enter after every line or sentence; keep normal paragraph breaks and choose the 2.0 line-spacing setting.

How do I double space only the body of my paper?
Select the body paragraphs without selecting the title page, references, or other sections that have different rules. Then choose Home > Line and Paragraph Spacing > 2.0. Review the beginning and end of the selection to ensure you did not include an excluded section.

Should I remove space after paragraphs?
Only if the assignment or style instructions call for it. Double line spacing and paragraph-after spacing are different. If the directions specify double spacing with no extra paragraph gaps, set Before and After to 0 pt in the Paragraph dialog.

Can I double space a paper in Word for the web?
Yes. Select the text and use the Home tab’s line-spacing menu to choose 2.0. For detailed paragraph settings or advanced layout issues, open the document in the Word desktop app.

Will double spacing change my margins or font?
No. It changes the vertical distance between lines, not the font or page margins. Those settings may affect the final page count, so leave them as required by your instructions.

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