Remove Formatting in Microsoft Word: A Step-by-Step Guide

To remove formatting in Microsoft Word, select the text, then choose Home > Clear All Formatting (the A with an eraser) in Word for Microsoft 365 on Windows. This clears many direct font and text effects; if paragraph spacing or a style remains, use the paragraph and style controls described below. Save a copy first if you are changing a long or important document.

What You’ll Need

A document open in Microsoft Word. These instructions use Word for Microsoft 365 on Windows; Word for Mac has similar ribbon controls, with a few shortcut differences noted below.
A mouse or trackpad, or a keyboard for selecting the text you want to change.
Optional: a saved copy of the document if you are resetting formatting throughout a large file.

Step-by-Step

Select the text to reset. Drag across a word, sentence, or paragraph. To select the entire document in Word for Windows, press Ctrl+A; on Mac, press Command+A. If you only want to change one section, avoid selecting everything. To format separate passages, select one passage, then hold Ctrl on Windows (Command on Mac) while selecting additional text, if your Word version and selection method allow it. Otherwise, repeat the reset for each passage.
Open the Home tab. Find the Font group on the ribbon. Click Clear All Formatting, usually shown as an uppercase A with a small eraser. In Word for Mac, select the text and look for the same command on the Home tab; the ribbon layout may place it differently. If the ribbon is simplified or narrow, expand it or open the Font group to find the command.
Check the result before moving on. The selected text should lose direct text effects such as manually applied bold, italic, font color, highlighting, and font-size changes. It may take on the formatting specified by its paragraph style, such as Normal or Heading 1. That is expected: a style can continue to define how text looks even after direct formatting is cleared.
Reset paragraph formatting separately if needed. If the text still has unusual alignment, indents, or spacing, select the affected paragraphs and use the controls in Home > Paragraph to set alignment, indentation, and line spacing. On Windows, Ctrl+Q resets paragraph formatting to the settings of the current paragraph style. It does not clear character formatting such as bold or font color, so use it alongside Clear All Formatting when both kinds of formatting need attention. On Mac, use the Paragraph controls on the ribbon rather than assuming the Windows shortcut applies.
Apply a consistent style if the appearance is still wrong. Select the relevant paragraphs, open Home > Styles, and choose Normal for ordinary body text or an appropriate heading style for a heading. This changes the style governing the selected paragraphs. Applying Normal can also change features such as spacing and font, so use a heading style for headings rather than making them look like headings with manual bold and a larger font.
Repeat the process for other document areas. Headers, footers, footnotes, text boxes, and table cells may need separate selections. Double-click a header or footer to edit it, then select its text and clear formatting there. Click inside a text box or table cell before selecting its contents. A document-wide selection may not include every object, so inspect these areas if the formatting problem persists.
Save and review the document. Check the edited section and nearby paragraphs for changed line breaks, list indents, heading appearance, or page breaks. Use Ctrl+Z on Windows or Command+Z on Mac immediately if the change has an unwanted effect. When the result is right, save the file.

For a quick character-only reset in Word for Windows, select the text and press Ctrl+Spacebar. This removes direct character formatting, such as a manually chosen font or bold setting, but leaves paragraph-level settings such as alignment and spacing alone. It can also leave formatting supplied by a style. Use the ribbon command if you want a visible, mouse-accessible option or are unsure which kind of formatting is causing the problem.

Common Mistakes

Resetting the wrong amount of text: Clicking Clear All Formatting with no selection may affect only the text insertion point or the current paragraph, depending on the context. Select the exact text first, and check the selection shading before clicking.
Expecting the command to remove every style: A style can still control the font, spacing, or heading appearance after direct formatting is cleared. If you want ordinary body text, choose Normal from the Styles group; if you want a heading, apply the appropriate heading style instead.
Confusing font formatting with paragraph formatting: Bold and font color are character formatting. Alignment, indents, and space before or after a paragraph are paragraph formatting. A character reset alone will not fix paragraph spacing; use the Paragraph controls or Ctrl+Q on Windows.
Selecting the whole file for a small cleanup: Ctrl+A is convenient, but a full-document reset can flatten headings, lists, and intentional emphasis. Select only the affected passage unless you really intend to standardize the entire document.
Assuming text in every object was included: Headers, footers, text boxes, and some table content may need separate editing. Review them rather than assuming one selection reached all content.

Tips

Use styles for a clean, consistent document. After clearing direct formatting, apply Normal to body paragraphs and Heading 1 or Heading 2 to section headings. Using styles makes it easier to change the appearance of all similar text together and helps Word build a navigation pane or table of contents.
Keep emphasis that carries meaning. Clearing formatting can remove visual cues such as bold labels or colored warnings. If those distinctions matter, restore them selectively after the cleanup rather than resetting everything indiscriminately.
Paste without bringing in outside formatting. When copying from a website or another document, use Home > Paste > Keep Text Only where available. In Word for Windows, the paste options may also appear beside pasted content; choose the clipboard option for text only. This helps prevent unfamiliar fonts, colors, and spacing from entering the document.
Use the undo command promptly. Undo is the fastest way back if a reset changes more than expected. For broad cleanups, make a duplicate file first so you can compare the original and the revised version.
Check lists before applying Normal. Numbering and bullets have their own controls and may be tied to paragraph formatting. If a list changes unexpectedly, select the list and restore its bullet or numbering format from Home > Paragraph.

Troubleshooting

Some text still looks different after clearing formatting. Select that paragraph and inspect the style name in Home > Styles. Apply the intended style, such as Normal, then check whether the difference is caused by paragraph settings or a theme font. If the text is a hyperlink, its appearance may be controlled by the Hyperlink style; changing its style or removing the link may be necessary, depending on whether you want to keep the link.

Spacing or indentation did not change. Select the entire paragraph, including its paragraph mark if practical, and use the Paragraph controls on Home to adjust alignment, indents, and line spacing. On Windows, Ctrl+Q resets paragraph formatting to the selected paragraph style. If the paragraph is in a list or table, its list or table settings may also affect the result.

The command is missing or unavailable. Confirm that the Home tab is open and that you are editing the document rather than viewing it in read-only mode. Expand a collapsed ribbon or widen the Word window; commands can be hidden when the ribbon is compact. In Word for Mac, check the Home tab for Clear All Formatting. If you are using Word for the web, the ribbon may be arranged differently; select the text and inspect Home for the same command, or open the document in the desktop app for more complete controls.

The text changes back after editing. Check whether a style, theme, or document template is applying the appearance. Applying a consistent style is usually more reliable than repeatedly changing the font by hand. Also check whether Track Changes is on: formatting changes may appear as revisions until they are accepted or rejected. Clearing formatting does not remove tracked changes, comments, or document content.

A large selection changed unexpectedly. Press Ctrl+Z on Windows or Command+Z on Mac right away. Then select a smaller area and repeat the operation. If you already saved or closed the document, use a backup or version history if available; do not rely on undo after closing Word.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Clear All Formatting delete the text?
No. It changes the selected text’s appearance, not its words. It does not delete the selected content, but it can remove visual formatting such as bold, color, or highlighting. Review the result in case the text was using a style you wanted to keep.

How do I remove formatting from the whole Word document?
In Word for Windows, press Ctrl+A to select the document, then choose Home > Clear All Formatting. On Mac, use Command+A and the Clear All Formatting command on Home. Check headings, lists, tables, headers, and footers afterward because they may need separate formatting or may not be included in the main selection.

How do I remove formatting but keep bold or italics?
There is no single reset that knows which formatting you consider important. Reset the selected text, then reapply the bold or italic formatting you want to preserve. For a small passage, you can also remove only the unwanted attributes using the Font controls instead of clearing all formatting.

What is the difference between Clear All Formatting and Ctrl+Spacebar?
In Word for Windows, Ctrl+Spacebar clears direct character formatting from the selection. It does not reset paragraph properties such as alignment and spacing. Clear All Formatting is the ribbon command for a broader formatting cleanup, though style-based formatting or other document features may still govern the result.

Will removing formatting get rid of comments or tracked changes?
No. Formatting commands do not delete comments, accept or reject tracked changes, or remove text. Manage those separately from the Review tab. If the document has revisions, check how Word displays them before deciding whether to accept or reject any changes.

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