How to remove page number from section in Word

There are different ways to remove certain page numbers in Word. It is possible to remove page numbering in Word from different sections. You can delete a page number in Word from a specific page without affecting the numbering in the rest of the document. It means you have to make sections in your document and format page numbers afterward. This article will show you the steps to remove the page number from a section in Word. It will also show you how to remove page numbers from certain pages in Word and make them hidden.

Remove page numbers from the first section

Before starting, you need to understand how to insert different page numbers for other sections in Word.

In our example, we have created a 5-page document including a front page and a Table of Contents. We have also inserted a header and a footer with page numbers starting from the first page. We want to show you how to remove specific page numbers correctly.

Our case:

• 5-page Word document
• Remove the first two page numbers, including the front page and Table of Contents.

Two options:

1. The page numbering starts from the third page as number 3, where the first two page numbers are invisible or hidden.
2. The third page starts as 1, and the first two pages have no numbering.

We will show you both results, as it has similar steps. The second option requires number formatting.

Add section break

We will first start by viewing the paragraph marks in our document > Show/Hide ¶

• Go to your Home tab
• Under the Paragraph group > click on the symbol ¶

In our case, we want to remove the page numbering of the first two pages. Go to the end of the last page, where you want to delete the page numbering. It means that you need to be on page 2. Do not place the mouse cursor in the footer. You are at the right place as long as the footer remains greyed out.

Follow these steps below to remove the page number from the first section in Word:

1. Place your cursor at the end of the last page where you want to remove page numbering.
2. Insert section break by clicking on Layout in the ribbon
3. Then go to Breaks
4. Select > Next Page

Section Break (Next Page) is written into your document on the second page.

Unlink to the previous section

Go down to the next page below the section break. In our case, it is page number 3.

So you should be in section 2 and not section 1 in your document.

1. Double-click in the footer after the section break page
2. Go to Header & Footer Tools > Design
3. Click on Link to Previous if highlighted

We need to deselect it because we don’t want to link to the section above. This way, you can change the page numbers in the first section without affecting other sections.

Now it looks a bit different when you are in the footer. On the left of the footer, you see Footer -Section 2-, but on the right, there is no Same as Previous anymore.

Remove page number in the first section

Go to a page in the first section where you want to remove numbering. In our example, we are on page 2.

• Double-click in the footer of the first section
• Select the page number
• Delete it by clicking the delete or backspace button on your keyboard

It will automatically delete the page numbers of the first two pages as they are both considered as one section. The page numbers are removed from the first section, but the numbering in the other sections remains. It is because you deselected the Link to Previous. Always remember to unlink a section if its page numbering will be different from the one before.

In the example below, we solved the first option, where we deleted the first two page numbers. Now you can remove a page number from a section in Word.

Format page numbers

It is possible to delete a page in the middle of a document without affecting the page numbering in the other sections. In our example, the page numbers are removed from pages 1 and 2, and now they are invisible. Page 3 remains unchanged.

If you want page 3 to start as page 1, you should format page numbers.

Follow these steps to open the Page Number Format box:

1. Double-click the footer of the page you want to change its numbering
2. Go to Header & Footer Tools > Design in the ribbon
3. Click on Page Number
4. Select Format Page Numbers

Change page numbering

The Page Number Format box appears. Select the Number format.

• In our case, we want to use the standard numbers 1, 2, 3,
• If you wish Roman numerals (i, ii, iii) or other numbering symbols, click on the arrow to change it. Then scroll down to see more options.

Follow these steps in the Page Number Format box:

• Under Page numbering > Select Start at to see the blue circle with a white dot
• Then type the number you want this page to start with, e.g., 1
• Click OK

Page number 3 will start as page 1; page number 4 is now page 2, and so on. We changed the page numbers without affecting the first two pages we removed earlier. You can remove the Show/Hide paragraph symbol in the Home tab at the end.

The picture below is the result of the second option in our example, where we deleted the first two page numbers and changed the numbering page 3 to number 1.

Conclusion

There are different ways to remove certain page numbers in Word. You can remove page numbers from certain pages in Word without affecting the rest of the numbering. Delete a page number from a specific page in Word, and make it invisible or hidden. You can format page numbers if you want the next section to start at a different number.