Footnotes and Endnotes are used to provide explanations, additional comments that are more
detailed or references to specific information in a document.
By default, Word will place the Footnote body at the end of the page while the Endnote content
at the end of the document. An example of how it looks can be seen in the following image.
See also: 3 Ways to Create Word Endnote Positions (at the end of a document, at the end of a
section, and between text).
A footnote or endnote consists of:
A sign (in the form of a superscript) located in a document. Signs can be numbers,
symbols, or letters.
Fill in the footnote/endnote caption located at the end of the page or document/section.
Here's a tutorial on how to make footnotes and endnotes in Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019,
2021, 365.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. How to Insert Footnotes and Endnotes
2. How to Delete a Footnote/Endnote
3. How to Move or Copy a Footnote/Endnote
4. How to Change the Footnote/Endnote Number Format
5. How to Set Footnote / Endnote Numbering Starting with the Number 1 on Each Page or
Section
6. How to Create a Caption for a Long Footnote / Endnote
7. How to Turn a Footnote into an Endnote and Vice Versa
How to Insert Footnotes and Endnotes in Word
1. Click on the section where you want to insert the footnote / endnote mark.
2. On the References tab, Footnotes group, click:
o Insert Footnote (to create footnotes)
o or Insert Endnote (to create an endnote)
3. Now the cursor will move to the section to type the content of the footnote/endnote.
Continue by typing the footnote/endnote content next to the number.
Tip: You can also use the following shortcuts to create or add footnotes/endnotes:
CTRL + ALT + F for footnotes.
CTRL + ALT + D for the endnote.
How to Delete Footnotes and Endnotes
1. Select the footnote/endnote tag in the document to be deleted.
2. Press the DELETE button.
How to Move or Copy Footnotes and Endnotes
If you want to move the footnote/endnote to a different position, you don't need to delete it first.
Simply use:
Cut Paste (CTRL X & CTRL V) to move it.
Copy Paste (CTRL C & CTRL V) to copy and place it in a new location.
Provided you have used auto-numbering, then the footnotes/endnotes will be renumbered
correctly and the entries reordered.
Note: if the numbering doesn't change immediately when you add, remove, or move a
footnote/endnote; then update it using Print Preview.
How to Change the Footnote and Endnote Number Format
By default, the numbering of footnotes and endnotes will automatically be numbered 1, 2, 3, and
so on.
However, we can change it to another format, such as: abc, roman numerals (i, ii, iii), or
symbols.
Use the following method to change the footnote/endnote format at once in a document or
section.
See here: How to Make a Section Break
Steps:
1. Click on the section to change the footnote/endnote format. If the document does not
have sections, then click anywhere in the document.
2. On the tab References, in the group Footnotes, click the arrow Dialog Box Launcher to
open the dialog box.
3. In the section LocationClick Footnotes or Endnotes.
4. In the Number format box, select the format you want. If you want to use symbols,
click the Symbol button.
5. Click Apply.
How to Set Footnote / Endnote Numbering Starting with the
Number 1 on Each Page or Section
1. On the tab References, in the group Footnotes, click the arrow Dialog Box Launcher to
open the dialog box.
2. On the box Start at, click the number 1.
3. In the Numbering box, select:
o Restart each section, footnote / endnote starts with the number 1 in each section.
o Restart each page, footnote/endnote starts with the number 1 on each page.
4. Click Apply.
How to Create Captions for Long Footnotes and Endnotes
If the footnote / endnote is too long, it will be continued on the next page. For this reason, we can
make a caption so that readers know that this footnote / endnote is connected to the next page.
Steps:
1. Choose View | Draft.
2. On the tab Referencesgroup FootnotesClick Show Notes.
3. If the document has a footnote and an endnote, a dialog box will appear. Choose:
o View footnote area (to view footnotes)
o or View endnote area (to view endnotes)
4. On the list, click:
o Footnote Continuation Notice (to annotate footnotes)
o or Endnote Continuation Notice (to create an endnote description)
5. Then type text for a caption, for example ... Continue to the next page.
6. Format it as you want, such as changing the font type or italicizing italics.
7. Back to view Print Layout And notice that in the last line of the footnote / endnote, the
caption that was typed earlier has appeared.
8. To edit the caption you created, repeat steps 1-4 and make the changes you want.
Troubleshooting: When using Word 2013 and 2016, there is a possibility that the caption does
not appear due to a bug problem.
Solution:
Update Word 2013 and 2016 to Office version 16.0.6741.2021.
Or save the Word document to format 97–2003 (*.doc).
How to Turn a Footnote into an Endnote and Vice Versa
We can change the Footnote to an Endnote or vice versa to change the Endnote to a Footnote.
Either for one, several, or all.
How to Turn a Footnote into an Endnote and Vice Versa
Right-click on the footnote/endnote content to be changed and select Convert to Footnote or
Convert to Endnote.
How to Turn Multiple Footnotes into Endnotes and Vice
Versa
Note: This method is to change multiple footnotes/endnotes that are located in a row.
1. Choose View | Draft.
2. On the tab Referencesgroup FootnotesClick Show Notes.
3. If the document has a footnote and an endnote, a message appears. Choose View
footnote area or View endnote area, and then click OK.
4. On the note pane, select multiple footnotes/endnotes to be changed (click on the first
footnote/endnote and slide the mouse to select another footnote/endnote).
5. Right-click and select Convert to Footnote or Convert to Endnote.
How to Turn an Entire Footnote into an Endnote and Vice
Versa
1. On the tab References, in the group Footnotes, click the arrow Dialog Box Launcher to
open the dialog box.
2. Click Convert.
3. Click on the desired option and click OK.
4. Click Close.