How to add a page-numbering scheme to a document’s front matter in Word

Adding page numbers to a Word document is an easy task, but additional requirements can complicate things. Learn how to format the page numbers in the front matter of a Word document differently from the rest.

Nothing is easier than displaying page numbers in a Word document. This only takes a few clicks. However, if you want to format the numbers in the front of the document differently from the rest of the document, you need to know a few tricks. By adding a section break, Word allows you to format sections differently. In this document, I’ll show you how to format the page numbers of the front page of a document differently from those in the main document.

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I use Microsoft 365 on a Windows 10 64-bit system, but you can use an earlier version. For your convenience, you can: download the demonstration .docx and .doc files† You can’t insert section breaks in Word for the web, so you want to use Word desktop. We work with Word headers, but everything works the same in the footer.

How to set your page numbering in Word

If you’re working with an existing document, check that document for existing section breaks and page numbers that you need to delete, change, or modify. We are working with a document that does not yet contain any of these elements.

Here’s what we’re going to do:

• Add page numbers throughout the document.
• Place a section break between the front matter and the main document. The preliminary work consists of a title page and a table of contents.
• Break the link between the two sections, the preliminary work and the main document.
• Add and format a new page numbering scheme for the front matter.

It sounds complicated, but it really isn’t and once you do, page numbering beyond the simplest scheme will make more sense.

1. How to add the page numbers in Word

Simple documents usually require a simple numbering scheme, where a page number is displayed on all pages. To achieve this using the document in figure A, do the following:

1. Double click on the header area to open it – it doesn’t matter which page you are on.
2. On the Header and Footer contextual tab, click Page Number in the Header and Footer group.
3. Pick a scheme you like, but I chose the simplest, just number 1.

Image A

Figure B

As you can on Figure B, all four pages are numbered, 1 to 4, starting on page 1, the title page. Next, let’s add a section break so that Word can format the numbers in the front text differently than the numbers in the main document (pages 3 and 4).

2. Insert a section break in Word

Word is flexible enough to allow for different page-to-page numbering schemes, but it’s really section-to-section. A section is a group of page numbers with different document-level formatting requirements.

Our demonstration document (Image A) has four pages: a title page, a table of contents page, and two pages in the main document. The title page and the table of contents form the preliminary work. To insert a page break between the front matter and the main document, do the following:

1. Double-click a header tab to close the header.
2. Turn on the Show/Hide feature so you can see the page break and section break symbols.
3. Select the hard page break on page 2. The section break we’ll insert contains a page break, so you don’t need the current hard break.
4. Click the Layout tab.
5. In the Page Setup group, click the Pauses option.
6. In the Section Breaks section, choose Next Page from the drop-down list. If adding this break added a blank page, remove the page break.

Figure C shows the new section break.

Figure C

At the moment the page numbers are still as they were. That’s because the two sections are still connected. To unlink them, click the Header tab -Section 2- at the top of page 3. On the right side, you should see the Same as Previous tab, which describes the header relationship between the sections. If there isn’t, someone has already disconnected the sections.

To disconnect the sections, do the following:

1. Click the Header -Section 2- tab at the top of page 3.
2. On the Header and Footer contextual tab, click Link to Previous in the Navigation group. Click Yes to confirm the pause.

That is it! You will still see the Header -Section 2 tab, but the Same as Previous tab is gone. This is a visual indication that the sections are no longer linked. Now we are ready to format the page numbers in the preliminary work.

3. How to number the preliminary work in Word

Now we are ready to correct the front page page numbers. Click anywhere in the first section, page 1 or 2. If necessary, reopen the header section, but that section should still be open. Select a page number and choose Format Page Number from the Page Number drop-down list (on the Header & Footer contextual tab). In the resulting dialog box, select the format I, ii, iii, … from the Number Format drop-down list. Then check the Start at setting in the Page Number section. If it is not 1, enter 1now, as shown in Figure D† Click OK to return to the document. Page 1 is now i, page 2 is now ii, but pages 3 and 4 are still numeric numbers.

Figure D

The title page, page 1, still has a page number, I, and we want to turn that off. To do this, click the Other First Page option in the Options group. As if by magic, that page number disappears, as shown in Figure E†

Figure E

Adding a simple page number to any page is easy. Resizing from one page to another requires some extra work. By adding a section break, you can format page numbers differently per section.