The fastest way to remove a blank or unwanted page
To delete a page in Word, select all the content on that page and press Delete or Backspace. If the page is blank, place your cursor at the top of the page, then hold Shift and press Ctrl+End to select everything from that point to the end of the document, then press Delete. For a page in the middle of your document, click at the start of the page you want to remove, then use Shift+Page Down to select the entire page, and press Delete.
The method that works depends on why the page exists. A page filled with text deletes differently than a page that is blank because of extra paragraph marks or page breaks. Word often creates unwanted blank pages when you insert manual page breaks, add extra line breaks at the end of a section, or have formatting that pushes content to the next page.
Key Takeaways
- Blank pages caused by extra paragraph marks disappear when you delete those marks using Find & Replace or by manually selecting and deleting them.
- Pages created by manual page breaks (Ctrl+Enter) require you to find and delete the page break itself, not the content around it.
- Showing formatting marks (Ctrl+Shift+8) reveals paragraph marks and page breaks so you can see exactly what is creating the blank page.
- If a page is blank because of a table at the end of your document, delete the paragraph mark after the table to remove the extra page.
Delete a page filled with text or content
Click anywhere on the page you want to delete. Then press Ctrl+A three times in succession — the first press selects the current paragraph, the second selects the current section, and the third selects the entire document. Instead, use a more precise method: click at the very beginning of the page, hold Shift, then click at the end of the page. This selects only that page's content.
Once the page is selected, press Delete or Backspace. The content disappears and the page is removed. If deleting the content leaves you with a blank page, that blank page likely exists because of formatting or extra paragraph marks, which you will need to address separately using the methods below.
Remove a blank page caused by extra paragraph marks
Blank pages often appear because of multiple paragraph marks (the ¶ symbol) stacked at the end of a section or between sections. To see these marks, press Ctrl+Shift+8 (or Ctrl+* on some keyboards) to toggle formatting marks on and off. Paragraph marks appear as small ¶ symbols throughout your document.
Once you can see the marks, click right before the first paragraph mark on the blank page and drag to select all the extra marks. Press Delete to remove them. If there are many extra marks, use Find & Replace: press Ctrl+H, type ^p^p in the Find field (this represents two paragraph marks in a row), leave the Replace field empty, and click Replace All. This removes all instances of double paragraph marks, which often clears unwanted blank pages.
Be careful not to delete all paragraph marks — you need at least one at the end of each paragraph to keep your document formatted correctly. Use Replace All cautiously, or click Replace one at a time to control which marks are removed.
Delete a page created by a manual page break
A manual page break is an invisible formatting character that forces Word to start a new page. You create one by pressing Ctrl+Enter. These breaks do not show as content, but they do create pages. To find and remove them, first show formatting marks by pressing Ctrl+Shift+8. Manual page breaks appear as a line across the page labeled "Page Break".
Click directly on the page break line and press Delete. The page break disappears and the content that was on the next page moves up to fill the space. If you cannot see the page break even with formatting marks on, it may be hidden in a section break instead — section breaks are more complex and require you to access the Page Layout tab to remove them.
Remove a blank page at the end of your document caused by a table
If your document ends with a table and there is a blank page after it, Word is creating that page because of a paragraph mark that must follow every table. You cannot delete this paragraph mark entirely, but you can hide it by making it very small or by adjusting the table's position.
The simplest fix: click right after the table, at the paragraph mark that appears after it. Press Ctrl+Shift+8 to see formatting marks if you cannot see it. Select that paragraph mark, then reduce its font size to 1 point. The mark still exists (Word requires it), but it no longer creates a visible blank page. Alternatively, click inside the table, go to the Table Design tab, and adjust the table's spacing or borders to move it higher on the page.
Use Find & Replace to clear multiple blank pages at once
If your document has several blank pages scattered throughout, Find & Replace can clear many of them in one action. Press Ctrl+H to open Find & Replace. In the Find field, type ^p (which represents a single paragraph mark). In the Replace field, type ^p as well, but type it only once. Click Replace All.
This removes every instance of multiple paragraph marks in a row, replacing them with a single mark. This method works best for documents where blank pages are caused by extra line breaks rather than manual page breaks. If your document still has blank pages after this, switch to the methods above to find and remove page breaks or table-related formatting.
Prevent blank pages from appearing in the future
Blank pages usually appear because of habits that create extra formatting. Avoid pressing Enter multiple times at the end of a section — press it once and let Word handle spacing through paragraph formatting instead. Do not use Ctrl+Enter (manual page break) unless you specifically need to force content to a new page; use section breaks or page break settings in the paragraph formatting menu instead.
When you need content to start on a new page, use the paragraph formatting menu rather than manual breaks. Right-click the paragraph you want to move, select Paragraph, go to the Line and Page Breaks tab, and check "Page break before". This is cleaner than a manual page break and less likely to create orphaned blank pages if you edit your document later.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does Word keep creating a blank page when I delete content?
Word requires at least one paragraph mark in a document at all times. If you delete all content but the paragraph mark remains, you see a blank page. Show formatting marks with Ctrl+Shift+8, then delete the remaining paragraph mark. If the blank page persists, a page break or section break is likely causing it — look for a line labeled "Page Break" or check your section breaks in the Page Layout tab.
How do I delete a page in the middle of my document without losing the content after it?
Select only the page you want to remove by clicking at its start and Shift+clicking at its end. Press Delete. Content from the next page will move up. If you want to keep the content but move it to a different location, cut it instead of deleting it (Ctrl+X), then paste it where you want it (Ctrl+V).
What is the difference between a page break and a section break?
A page break (Ctrl+Enter) straightforward starts a new page. A section break controls page formatting like margins, headers, and orientation — it is more complex and appears in the Page Layout tab. If you see "Section Break" in formatting marks instead of "Page Break", you may need to delete the section itself rather than just the break, which requires accessing the Page Layout menu.
Can I undo a page deletion if I made a mistake?
Yes. Press Ctrl+Z when ready after deleting to undo the last action. Word keeps an undo history, so you can press Ctrl+Z multiple times to go back several steps. If you have already saved the document, undo will not work — you would need to reopen the previous saved version if your program has a version history or recovery feature.