The fastest way to remove a footnote
To delete a footnote in Word, click anywhere in the footnote text itself — the small numbered text at the bottom of the page or end of the document — and then press Delete or Backspace. Word removes both the footnote number in your main text and the footnote content at the same time. You do not need to find and delete the number separately.
If you cannot see your footnotes on screen, they are there but hidden. Go to the References tab at the top of Word, find the Show Notes button (it looks like a small page with lines), and click it. Word will jump to wherever your footnotes are and display them so you can see what you are deleting before you do it.
The reason this works is that Word treats a footnote as a single object anchored to the number in your main text. Deleting the footnote text automatically removes the anchor, which removes the number from your document. You cannot accidentally delete one without the other.
Key Takeaways
- Click in the footnote text at the bottom of the page or end of the document, then press Delete or Backspace to remove it completely.
- Word deletes the footnote number in your main text and the footnote content together — you do not delete them separately.
- If footnotes are not visible on your screen, use the Show Notes button on the References tab to display them.
- Deleting a footnote does not affect the rest of your document or renumber the remaining footnotes automatically in all cases.
Finding footnotes when they are not visible
Word hides footnotes by default in some views. If you see a number in your text but cannot find the corresponding footnote at the bottom of the page, switch to Print Layout view. Click the View tab at the top, then select Print Layout. This is the view where footnotes appear at the bottom of each page.
If you are in Print Layout and still cannot see footnotes, they may be at the end of the document instead. Scroll to the very end of your document — footnotes set to appear at document end will be there, grouped together after your last paragraph. You can change this setting later, but for now you can find and delete them there.
Deleting a footnote by clicking the number in your text
An alternative method is to click the small superscript number in your main text — the one that marks where the footnote is anchored — and then press Delete. This removes the footnote just as effectively as clicking in the footnote text itself. Some people find this easier because the number in your text is often easier to spot than scrolling to find the footnote at the bottom.
Right-clicking the number gives you a menu with a Delete Footnote option as well. This is slower than just pressing Delete, but it makes the action explicit if you want to double-check before removing it.
What happens to numbering when you delete a footnote
When you delete a footnote, Word automatically renumbers all the footnotes that come after it. If you had footnotes numbered 1, 2, 3, and 4, and you delete footnote 2, the remaining footnotes become 1, 2, and 3. This happens when ready and without any action from you.
This automatic renumbering is why you should not manually type footnote numbers into your document. If you type "1" and "2" by hand and then delete a footnote, your manual numbers will be wrong but Word's automatic ones will be correct. Always let Word handle the numbering.
Undoing a deleted footnote
If you delete a footnote by mistake, press Ctrl+Z when ready to undo. Word will restore the footnote and its number to exactly where they were. You can undo multiple deletions in a row by pressing Ctrl+Z repeatedly, as long as you have not made other edits in between.
If you have made other changes since deleting the footnote, you can still undo, but Word will undo those changes too. The undo history works backwards from your most recent action, so undoing takes you back through every change you made.
Deleting all footnotes at once
Word does not have a single button to delete all footnotes at once. You must delete them one by one. However, you can speed this up by using Find and Replace. Press Ctrl+H to open Find and Replace, then in the Find field type ^f (the caret symbol followed by the letter f, which represents any footnote). Leave the Replace field empty and click Replace All. Word will delete every footnote in your document.
Before you do this, make sure you actually want to remove all footnotes. There is no warning dialog — Replace All executes when ready. If you change your mind, press Ctrl+Z right away to restore them.
Moving a footnote instead of deleting it
If you want to keep a footnote but move it to a different location in your document, click the footnote number in your main text and cut it (Ctrl+X). Then click where you want the footnote to appear and paste it (Ctrl+V). Word moves the footnote and renumbers it based on its new position. This is faster than deleting and retyping.
You can also drag the footnote number to a new location by clicking and holding it, then dragging it to where you want it. This works in most versions of Word, though the cut-and-paste method is more reliable if dragging does not work.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I delete just the footnote text without removing the number from my document?
No. Word treats the footnote number and the footnote text as a single unit. Deleting one deletes the other. If you want to keep the number but change the text, edit the footnote instead of deleting it.
What is the difference between a footnote and an endnote?
A footnote appears at the bottom of the page where it is referenced. An endnote appears at the end of the document. You delete both the same way — click in the text and press Delete. The location does not change how deletion works.
Will deleting a footnote affect my page breaks?
It may. If a footnote was taking up space at the bottom of a page, deleting it might move text up and change where your page breaks fall. Word recalculates page layout automatically after you delete a footnote, so you may see your pages reflow.
Can I recover a footnote after I close the document without saving?
No. Once you close the document without saving, any changes — including deleted footnotes — are gone. If you delete a footnote and then close Word, you cannot get it back. Save your document only after you are sure you want to keep your changes.
Why does Word sometimes show footnotes as endnotes?
You may have changed the footnote settings. Go to the References tab, click the small arrow in the Footnotes group, and check whether Footnotes or Endnotes is selected. Change it back to Footnotes if you want them at the bottom of pages. The deletion process is the same either way.