Microsoft Word offers a ton of features to personalize your documents - so many that it can be difficult to figure out how to make the simplest changes, such as centering the text. Fortunately, once you have learned the right method, it is very easy to remember. Just click the "Center" item in the "Paragraph" section at the top of the page (or press Ctrl + E as a keyboard shortcut to switch between left and centered text alignment).
Steps
Method 1 of 2: Center the Text Horizontally
Step 1. Select the text you want to center
If you've already written that part of the document, the first thing you need to do is select it. Move the mouse cursor to the beginning of the section to be centered, then click and hold the left button. Move the cursor to the end of the text, which should be surrounded by a transparent blue box.
Step 2. Click the "Center" button on the top toolbar
Follow these guidelines:
- Look at the toolbar at the top of the Word window (the part with all the options). The "Home" section should be open, the one at the top left (this is the default). If not (or if you are not sure), click on "Home".
- Now, look under the "Paragraph" heading, located under Home, on the right. You should see three small buttons that look like pages with the text aligned left, center, and right.
- Click the button with the text aligned in the center.
Step 3. Deselect the text
The section you highlighted should be aligned with the center of the left and right page margins. Click where you want to move the cursor to continue writing the rest of the document.
If the text is not centered, you may have accidentally deselected it before pressing the "Center" key. You must press the button before clicking anywhere else on the page
Step 4. If you haven't written anything yet, simply click the "Center" button
If the document is empty, click the button to align the text in the center following the previous directions and everything you write from that moment on will be in the center of the page.
If you want to add centered text to the end of the document, click at the end of the document, press the Enter key to create a new line, then click the "Center" button
Step 5. Alternatively, press Ctrl + E
This key combination allows you to toggle between left and center alignment. Using the keyboard shortcut while the text is selected will make it centered (and left aligned again if you press Ctrl + E again). Used on a blank line, however, it will change the alignment of the cursor, so that the next word you write is centered.
Step 6. Use the other buttons to change alignment
The buttons next to the "Center" button in the toolbar allow you to select different text alignment styles. They all work like the "Center" button. From left to right, the buttons are:
- Align left.
- Align to center.
- Align right.
- Justify (an alignment similar to centered, except that words are automatically stretched to make all lines the same length).
Method 2 of 2: Center the Text Vertically
Step 1. Select the text you want to center
This method aligns the text midway between the bottom and top of the page. To begin with, highlight the text as you did in the previous method.
If you haven't written anything yet, skip this step. Once finished, the typed text will be centered vertically
Step 2. Open the "Layout" menu
Follow these guidelines:
- Click "Page Layout" in the top toolbar (to the right of the "Home" tab, the one selected by default).
- Click the "Page Setup" button.
- In the window that appears, click the "Layout" tab.
Step 3. Select the centered vertical alignment
In the tab you just opened, look for the "Vertical alignment" section, then select "Centered".
Step 4. Apply the changes
Clicking "OK" will change the text alignment and return to the document. If you wish, you can use the options under "Apply to" to select the parts of the text to center vertically.
For example, if you selected the text to center vertically, be sure to choose the "Selected text" option in the "Apply to" section
Advice
- If you want to create a title for your document, try increasing the size of the text as well as centering it. Read this article on how to change the font size.
- If you want to highlight important information, you can bold, italicize, or underline the text as well as center it. By default, these options are located to the left of the alignment change buttons, under the "Font" heading.
