Office online is a great tool to excess your documents on the go. It provides features you require while composing, editing, and sharing word documents. The only drawback though is that it only has basic features. This limits the number of editing tools available. Here is how to add columns in word online.
How to add columns in word online? In word online the page layout is preserved but you will not be able to add columns. As a workaround, open the document in Word and edit columns. To add columns in a word document, click on the Layout tab and select the columns option. Here you can choose the number of columns required.
The picture below gives you an overview of a word online document and the layout options available.
Note: The column option is not included. don’t worry it’s not missing only from your account.
Columns in Word are generally used to create a newsletter or documents with a similar layout. When it comes to editing word documents you have two options.
You can either
- Change the layout of the entire document or
- Highlight a portion of the document and change the layout.
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Adding columns to the selected text in word online
To add a column in word online, select the text you want to format
This can be done by left-clicking on the text and dragging it over the text to be selected. (as shown in the image above)
Image Once you have selected the text > click on the layout option
Here you will have various options to format your text select columns
As seen above under columns, there are multiple options:
- One – the text will look just as it is
- Two – the selected text will be divided into two columns
- Three – the selected text will be divided into three columns
- Left – selected text will move as a column to the left
- Right – selected text will move as a column to the right
- More columns – here you have multiple options like changing the number of columns and the width of individual columns.
Once you have decided on the option simply click on it and the text will be formatted. Repeat the process if you want to change the number of columns or want to undo the formatting altogether.
To undo the formatting click on the undo button or use Clrt + Z on the keyboard
Adding columns to the entire document in word
- Start by selecting the entire document
- Keyboard shortcut: Ctrl + A
- After selecting the entire text: Click on the layout option > Select Columns > Choose number of columns
The process to add columns to the document remains the same irrespective of the volume of the text.
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Formatting documents using Word
How to create columns in word online?
To create a column in word select the text > Click on layout > select Columns.
from the dropdown menu choose the number of columns you require.
Most editorials choose to have two or three columns. this depends on the amount of text you require to fit in a given space.
The picture above shows how two columns look. While the picture below shows how three columns look.
The text in the column is distributed automatically and you are not required to adjust anything manually.
The text can be moved around to suit your requirements.
Along with the number of columns in the document. You can also specify the width of the columns. You can also choose to have lines separating the columns.
Hope you found this tutorial on How to create columns in word online helpful.
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No, the free version of Word online does not support column addition. You can however use the desktop app on both Windows as well as Mac systems to include columns.
Yes, you can add more than two columns in word online. There is a dropdown menu while inserting columns that lets you increase or decrease the number of columns. You also have an option to include lines in between the columns.
This is a common problem and the solution is simple. All you need to do is position your cursor where you would like to insert the column. Open the Page Layout ribbon go to Page Setup and click Columns. From here add the number of columns you would like to add.
Additionally, if the text still gets scrambled you can insert column breaks. For this open Page layout in the Page setup section click Breaks and then select Column from the dropdown.
Anything you type after this will automatically go into a new column.
If the columns are not working double-check the column settings. Secondly, you will not see columns if you are not selecting the text to be formatted.
So, 1. Check the settings and 2. Check if you have selected the text.
When it comes to columns not showing in word check if you are viewing it in the right format. For example, in the draft view, they won’t show. Everything will show in a single column. To check click on the View tab check the document views group to see what view is being used. You can change the view from here as well.
Related word online tutorials:
- How to add page numbers in word online?
- How to insert shapes in Microsoft word online?
- Make a hanging indent on word online
- How to separate pages in word online?
- How to make an online form in Word
- Word online – How to add different headers
- How to insert § in Word Online?
In conclusion,
- The column addition and formatting options are not available on the free version of Word online as of now.
- To add columns to documents simply access the Word app on your computer.
- You can also use a normal word document and make the desired changes.
- The only drawback is that you will not be able to edit or view columns in word online.
- Nonetheless, you can edit and share documents using Word.
My name is Carissa Gudino and I am an expert in word online, using Word Online in my day-to-day tasks. In this blog, I will share with you tips and tutorials on how to use word online to its fullest potential. I work for various clients in various countries like the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, etc. My tutorials are designed to help beginners, as well as more experienced users, learn new tricks and tips on Microsoft word online. Check out more.