The fastest way to remove a blank page

A blank page at the end of your document usually exists because of extra paragraph marks, page breaks, or table spacing. The quickest fix is to go to the end of your document, position your cursor on the blank page, and press Backspace repeatedly until the page disappears into the previous page.

If Backspace alone does not work, turn on formatting marks first so you can see what is actually creating the space. In Word, press Ctrl+* (Windows) or Cmd+* (Mac) to show all hidden characters — paragraph marks, spaces, and page breaks will become visible. Then you can target the exact thing causing the blank page and delete it.

Most blank pages vanish within a few Backspace presses once you can see what you are deleting. The formatting marks stay visible until you toggle them off again with the same keyboard shortcut.

Key Takeaways

  • Position your cursor on the blank page and press Backspace to delete the paragraph marks or page breaks pushing content onto a new page.
  • Turn on formatting marks with Ctrl+* (Windows) or Cmd+* (Mac) to see paragraph marks and page breaks that create unwanted blank pages.
  • A table at the end of your document often creates a blank page because Word automatically adds a paragraph after every table — delete that final paragraph to remove the blank page.
  • If a page break was inserted intentionally, select it and press Delete to remove it, which will pull the following content back onto the previous page.

Finding what is creating the blank page

Formatting marks show you exactly what is taking up space. After you turn them on, you will see paragraph marks (¶) at the end of each line and special symbols for page breaks and other hidden elements. Blank pages are almost always caused by one of three things: extra paragraph marks, an intentional page break, or a table with forced spacing.

Click at the very beginning of the blank page and look at what symbol appears. If you see only paragraph marks, those are what you need to delete. If you see a page break symbol (a line with "Page Break" written on it), that is an intentional break someone inserted — you can delete it directly by clicking on it and pressing Delete.

Once you identify the culprit, the fix is straightforward. Most of the time, a few Backspace presses from the blank page will remove it entirely.

Dealing with tables that create blank pages

Tables are a common source of unwanted blank pages because Word automatically inserts a paragraph mark after every table. If your table is at the end of your document, that final paragraph mark pushes onto a new page and creates a blank page you cannot seem to delete.

To fix this, click right after the table (after the last cell) and look for a paragraph mark on the blank page. Delete that paragraph mark. If the blank page persists, the table itself may be too large for the page — in that case, you can reduce row height, adjust column width, or change the font size within the table to make it fit on one page.

If you need the space after the table for formatting reasons, reduce the font size of that final paragraph mark to 1 point instead of deleting it entirely. The page break will disappear, but the mark will still be there if you need it later.

Using Find and Replace to remove multiple blank pages

If your document has several blank pages scattered throughout, Find and Replace can remove them faster than manual deletion. Open Find and Replace with Ctrl+H (Windows) or Cmd+H (Mac).

In the Find field, type ^p^p (that is a caret followed by the letter p, twice). This searches for two paragraph marks in a row — the pattern that creates blank lines. In the Replace field, type ^p (one caret and p). Click Replace All to remove the extra spacing throughout your document.

Be cautious with Replace All on a large document — it is safer to click Replace once, see the result, and then decide whether to continue. You can always undo with Ctrl+Z if the result is not what you wanted.

When a blank page is actually a page break you need

Sometimes a blank page exists because someone inserted a page break intentionally — to start a new chapter, begin a new section, or separate content. Before you delete it, check whether the page break serves a purpose in your document structure.

If you decide the page break is not needed, click directly on the page break symbol (visible when formatting marks are on) and press Delete. The page break will disappear and the following content will move up to fill the space. If you want to keep the page break but hide the blank page for printing, you can adjust margins or spacing instead of removing the break itself.

Preventing blank pages when you edit

Blank pages often appear when you delete text from the middle of a document and paragraph marks shift unexpectedly. To avoid creating them in the first place, keep formatting marks visible while you work — you will see when ready when you are about to create extra space.

When you paste content from another document, Word sometimes brings hidden formatting with it that creates blank pages. After pasting, use Paste Special (Ctrl+Shift+V on Windows, Cmd+Shift+V on Mac) and choose Unformatted Text to paste only the words without the invisible formatting that causes problems.

If you work with others on the same document, ask them to keep formatting marks visible too. A blank page that seems random to you might be a deliberate page break someone else added — seeing it marked makes the conversation easier.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does my blank page come back after I delete it?

The blank page usually returns because you deleted the paragraph mark but not the page break that caused it, or because a table at the end of your document automatically recreates the space. Turn on formatting marks and look for a page break symbol — if you see one, click on it and press Delete. If it is a table issue, delete the paragraph mark that appears after the table itself.

Can I delete a blank page without turning on formatting marks?

You can try — just position your cursor on the blank page and press Backspace repeatedly. But you will be guessing at what you are deleting. Formatting marks take two seconds to turn on and show you exactly what is creating the space, so you delete the right thing on the first try.

What if I accidentally delete something important while removing a blank page?

Press Ctrl+Z (Windows) or Cmd+Z (Mac) when ready to undo. Word keeps a long undo history, so you can step back through your recent changes. If you went too far back, press Ctrl+Y or Cmd+Y to redo and move forward again.

Does deleting a blank page affect my document's page count?

Yes — removing a blank page reduces your total page count by one. If your document needs to be a specific length, check the page count before and after. You can see your current page count in the status bar at the bottom of the Word window, or by pressing Ctrl+Shift+G to open the Go To dialog.