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Microsoft Word tables are a useful way to display information without having to resort to an Excel spreadsheet. Sometimes, however, it's necessary to merge or split cells in a Word table to better get your point across. We're going to be showing you how to merge cells in Word so that two columns become one, as well as how to split a cell in Word to do the opposite. We'll be guiding you through the same for entire tables, too.
What do I mean by that? Let's use an example: you have two tables, one above the other, but you want to combine them into a single, larger table. By using the merge function, you can do just that. If you then want to break them apart again, you can do so using the split function.
Whichever you choose, it's quite a simple process. Just follow along below:
How to Merge Cells in Word
Merging cells in Word is extremely simple. We'll show you two different ways to do it below.
- Method 1: Select the cells you want to merge, right-click, and choose “Merge Cells”
- Method 2: Select the Cells you want to merge and press the “Merge” button in the “Layout” tab of the ribbon
After you've pressed the button, choose “Merge Cells” from the dropdown.
- Enjoy your merged cells
You can see that the table automatically adapts to accommodate the additional text, increasing the cell size.
How to Split Cells In Word
The process to split cells in Word is every similar to merging them. You just have to make some minor adjustments, like so:
- Method 1: Select your merged cell, right-click it, and press “Split Cells…”
- Method 2: Select the cell and press the “Merge” dropdown in the “Layout” tab of your ribbon.
Once you press the “Merge” button you'll be presented with a few options. Click “Split Cells”
- Choose the number of columns and rows to split into
In our case, we have four different words, so four columns, and we want these to be displayed on a single row. So we'll choose 4 and 1. Press “OK” when you're done.
- Enjoy your split cells
They should look something like below
- How to perform more complex cell splitting
You can also get a bit more advanced with cell splitting. Let's take the example below. We have a single merge/split column. Instead of splitting a single cell we can select the entire column, right-click it, and press the split button.
Now, rather than choosing one row, this time we choose two rows and two columns.
- Split into four squares
When you're done, you'll have four equally sized squares in your merge/split column.
How to Split a Table in Word
Now we've covered cells, but what if you have a large table you'd like to split in two. Perhaps so you can have it presented nicely on two separate pages. Here's how you can split a table in Word:
- Place your cursor in the row you want the table to split and press “Merge > Split table” in your ribbon
If you don't already know, you can find the “Merge” button in the “Layout” section of your ribbon.
- Enjoy your newly split tables in Word
How to Merge Tables in Word
If you're wondering how to combine tables in Word after you've split them or if you already made two separate tables, look no further. The process is even simpler than you might think.
- Hover over a table and grab the tables' handle
It should look like a plus or cross symbol, and present as a square in the top-left corner.
- Drag it over your other table until its top row aligns with the bottom row of the other table
A grey box should appear indicating how the tables will merge.
- Release your cursor to merge the tables in Word
They should automatically fit together. If the layout of some of the cells doesn't match up, you can use the splitting and cutting techniques above to fix them.
Extra: How to Duplicate a Page in Word
The process to copy a page in Word is simple, but it varies slightly depending on the document you have and your intentions. There's some variation between whether you have a single page or multi-page document, for example. We show you how to duplicate a page in Word for both single and multi-page documents, as well as how to insert a new blank page to do with what you want.
How to Add a Page Border in Word
Page borders are a useful tool. They make your document stand out without looking tacky, while providing a guide should somebody want to staple or hole punch. We show you how to add a border in Word, which has various pre-built design options to spice up your document.
