The fastest way to add a page in Word
To add a blank page in the middle of your document, place your cursor where you want the new page to start, then press Ctrl+Enter on Windows or Command+Enter on Mac. Word inserts a page break when ready, pushing everything below it to a fresh page. This works in Word Online, Word for Windows, and Word for Mac.
If you want to see where the page break actually is, go to the Home tab and click the ¶ button (called "Show/Hide Formatting Marks"). Page breaks appear as a dotted line labeled "Page Break" across the page. This is useful if you later need to delete or move the break.
For a new blank page at the very end of your document, you can also use the Insert tab, click Pages, then select Blank Page. This does the same thing as the keyboard shortcut but takes more clicks.
Key Takeaways
- Press Ctrl+Enter (Windows) or Command+Enter (Mac) to insert a page break wherever your cursor is positioned.
- Page breaks push all text below them to a new page and do not create extra blank lines.
- Turn on formatting marks to see exactly where page breaks sit in your document.
- Deleting a page break removes the break but keeps all the text — it just flows back onto the previous page.
- Section breaks are different from page breaks and are used when you want different formatting (like margins or headers) on different pages.
The difference between page breaks and section breaks
A page break straightforward moves your cursor to a new page. Everything below the break flows normally. A section break does the same thing but also lets you change formatting — margins, headers, footers, page orientation, or column layout — just for that section.
Most of the time you want a regular page break. Use a section break only if you need different formatting on different pages. For example, if your document has a title page in portrait orientation and the rest in landscape, you would insert a section break between them, then change the orientation for the second section.
To insert a section break, go to Insert > Pages > Page Break (in Word Online) or Insert > Breaks (in desktop Word), then choose the type: Continuous (no new page), Next Page (new page with new formatting), Odd Page (new page on the next odd-numbered page), or Even Page (new page on the next even-numbered page).
How to delete a page or page break
To remove a page break you inserted, turn on formatting marks (Home > ¶), click directly on the dotted "Page Break" line, and press Delete. The break disappears and text flows back together. If the page break was created by a section break, delete the section break the same way.
If you want to delete an entire page of content (not just the break), select all the text on that page by clicking at the start, holding Shift, and clicking at the end. Then press Delete. The page itself will disappear once the content is gone.
Sometimes a blank page appears at the end of your document because of extra paragraph marks or a section break. Turn on formatting marks to see what is creating it, then delete the extra marks or the break itself.
Adding pages in Word Online versus desktop Word
Word Online (the free version in your web browser) and desktop Word (the program you install on your computer) both use Ctrl+Enter or Command+Enter to add pages. The keyboard shortcut works the same way in both.
The menu path is slightly different. In Word Online, go to Insert > Pages > Blank Page. In desktop Word for Windows, go to Insert > Pages > Blank Page. In Word for Mac, the path is Insert > Page Break. But the keyboard shortcut is faster in all three.
Why a new page might not appear where you expect
If you press Ctrl+Enter and nothing seems to happen, your cursor might be at the very end of the document already. Word does not add a visible new page if there is no content below the break. Type something on the new page and it will appear.
If text is not moving to the new page the way you expect, check whether you have a section break instead of a page break. Section breaks can behave differently depending on their type. Also check your page settings — if your margins are very large or your page size is unusual, the layout might look different than expected.
If you see extra blank pages you did not create, they are usually caused by extra paragraph marks at the end of your document or by a page break left over from editing. Turn on formatting marks and delete the extra marks or breaks.
Controlling where pages break automatically
Word automatically breaks to a new page when you reach the bottom margin. You can control this by adjusting your margins (go to Layout > Margins) or by changing your page size (go to Layout > Size).
If you want to keep certain paragraphs together on the same page — for example, a heading and the paragraph below it — select those paragraphs, go to Home > Paragraph (the small arrow in the bottom right of the Paragraph group), click the Line and Page Breaks tab, and check Keep with next. This tells Word not to break between those paragraphs.
You can also prevent a paragraph from breaking in the middle by checking Keep lines together in the same dialog. This is useful for tables or lists that should stay intact.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I add a page without using a keyboard shortcut?
Yes. Go to the Insert tab, click Pages, and select Blank Page. This does exactly what Ctrl+Enter does, but the keyboard shortcut is faster once you remember it.
What happens to my text when I insert a page break?
Everything below your cursor moves to the new page. The text itself does not change — it just starts on a fresh page. If you delete the page break later, the text flows back together.
How do I add a page at the very beginning of my document?
Click at the very start of your document (before the first word), then press Ctrl+Enter. This creates a blank page and pushes all your existing text down. You can then type on the new first page.
Is there a limit to how many pages I can add?
No. You can add as many pages as you need. Word documents can be thousands of pages long. The only limit is your computer's memory and storage space.
Why does my page break keep moving when I edit my document?
Page breaks move automatically when you add or delete text above them. If you want a page break to stay in a specific place, you may need to use a section break with specific formatting, or adjust your margins and spacing to control where pages naturally break.