The fastest way to remove a blank or unwanted page
To delete a page in Word on Mac, select all the content on that page and press Delete or Backspace. If the page is blank, click anywhere on it, then use Command+A to select all content on the page, and press Delete. For a page in the middle of your document, place your cursor at the start of the page you want to remove, then select from there to the end of the page content and delete.
The method depends on what is actually taking up the space. A page might be blank because of extra paragraph marks, page breaks, or section breaks — not because there is content you need to remove. Word on Mac treats these invisible formatting marks the same way: select them and delete them to collapse the page.
If you are working with a document that has multiple sections or complex formatting, deleting a page sometimes requires you to delete the section break itself rather than the content. This is covered in the sections below.
Key Takeaways
- Select the content on the page you want to remove, then press Delete or Backspace — this works for both blank pages and pages with text.
- Blank pages are usually caused by extra paragraph marks or page breaks, not by hidden content, so deleting the formatting mark removes the page.
- Use Command+A while your cursor is on the target page to select only that page's content, rather than selecting the entire document by mistake.
- If a page will not delete, it may contain a section break; click at the start of the page and delete the section break from the Format menu instead.
Selecting and deleting content on a specific page
Click anywhere on the page you want to delete. Then press Command+A once. This selects all content on that page — not the entire document. Press Delete or Backspace. The page disappears.
If Command+A selects more than you intended, use your mouse instead. Click at the very start of the page (before the first character or paragraph mark), then hold Shift and click at the end of the page. This highlights everything in between. Press Delete.
For a page in the middle of your document, you can also place your cursor at the start of the page and use Shift+Command+End to select from that point to the end of the document, then adjust by clicking where you actually want the selection to stop.
Finding and removing page breaks that create blank pages
A blank page often exists because of a manual page break, not because of content. To see what is creating the page, turn on formatting marks. Go to the Word menu, select Preferences, then View, and check the box for "Formatting marks". Now you will see paragraph marks (¶), page breaks (shown as a line with "Page Break" text), and section breaks.
If you see a page break symbol on your blank page, click directly on it and press Delete. The page will collapse. Page breaks are the most common reason a blank page refuses to go away when you delete content — the break itself is what you need to remove.
Paragraph marks take up space too. If your blank page shows multiple ¶ symbols stacked on top of each other, select them and delete them. Each paragraph mark adds a line of space, so extra ones create blank pages.
Dealing with section breaks that span a page
Section breaks are different from page breaks. A section break marks a change in formatting — margins, headers, footers, or column layout — and sometimes Word reserves a whole page for the break itself. If you delete content but the page remains, a section break may be the cause.
With formatting marks visible, look for a line that says "Section Break (Next Page)" or "Section Break (Continuous)". Click directly on this line. Then go to the Format menu at the top, select Paragraph, and look for the option to delete the section break. Alternatively, click right before the section break and press Delete.
If you have two section breaks back-to-back, Word may be holding a blank page between them. Delete one of the section breaks, and the page usually collapses. Be aware that deleting a section break also removes any special formatting (like different margins or headers) that applied to that section.
When a page will not delete even after removing content
Some pages are stubborn because Word requires at least one paragraph mark to exist in a document. If you have deleted everything and still see a blank page, that final paragraph mark is what you are seeing. This is normal and not a problem — you cannot remove it, and it will not print.
If the page still appears after you have deleted all visible content and all page breaks, check whether the document has a table at the end. Tables sometimes create extra space. Click after the table and delete any paragraph marks that follow it.
Another cause is a very large image or object. If your document contains a large graphic, it may push content onto a new page. Click on the image, then go to Format and select Arrange to change how text wraps around it, or straightforward delete the image if it is not needed.
Removing pages from a multi-page document without losing other content
If you are deleting a page from the middle of a longer document, be careful not to select too much. Use your cursor to click at the very start of the page you want to remove, then hold Shift and click at the end of that page only. This prevents you from accidentally deleting content from the next page.
After you delete a page, Word automatically reflows the remaining content. Text from the next page moves up to fill the space. Check the pages before and after your deletion to make sure the formatting still looks correct — sometimes a heading or image ends up in an unexpected place after the reflow.
If you delete a page and the document layout breaks (text overlaps, margins look wrong, or spacing changes), undo the deletion with Command+Z and try a different approach. You may need to delete a section break instead of the content itself.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does my blank page stay there after I delete everything on it?
Word requires at least one paragraph mark in every document, so you cannot delete the final blank page. If the page is in the middle of your document, it is likely caused by a page break or section break, not by content. Turn on formatting marks to see what is actually there, then delete the break itself rather than trying to delete content.
How do I delete a page without deleting the page break?
Select only the content on the page, not the page break. Click at the start of the content, hold Shift, and click at the end of the content (but before the page break line). Press Delete. The content disappears but the page break remains, so a new blank page appears in its place. If you want to remove the page entirely, you must delete the page break too.
Can I delete multiple pages at once?
Yes. Click at the start of the first page you want to delete, then hold Shift and click at the end of the last page you want to delete. This selects all content across multiple pages. Press Delete. All selected pages disappear, and the remaining content flows together.
What if deleting a page messes up my document formatting?
Undo the deletion when ready with Command+Z. The issue is usually a section break — deleting it removes the formatting rules that applied to that section. Instead, try deleting just the content and leaving the section break in place, or manually adjust the formatting after the deletion using the Format menu.
Does deleting a page in Word on Mac affect how the document prints?
Yes. Deleting a page removes it from the printed version. The blank page you see on screen will not print, but if you delete a page with actual content, that content will not appear in the printout. Always check Print Preview (File menu, then Print) to see how your document will look when printed before you send it to a printer.