How to Make Collapsible Headings in Word

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To make collapsible headings in Microsoft Word, apply a built-in heading style (Heading 1, Heading 2, and so on) from the Home tab to your section titles. Then hover to the left of a heading and click the small triangle that appears. Everything under that heading, down to the next heading of the same or higher level, collapses. Click the triangle again to expand it. To collapse or expand everything at once, right-click a heading and choose Expand/Collapse > Collapse All Headings or Expand All Headings.

This works in Word for Microsoft 365, Word 2013 and later, and Word for Mac. Below you’ll also find how to make headings start collapsed when the document opens.

Step 1: Apply heading styles

  1. Click in a section title.
  2. On the Home tab, click Heading 1 in the Styles gallery. Use Heading 2 and Heading 3 for subsections.
  3. Repeat for each section.

Shortcuts: Ctrl + Alt + 1, 2, or 3 apply Heading 1, 2, or 3. Bold, large text that isn’t a heading style won’t collapse.

Step 2: Collapse and expand a heading

  1. Move your mouse to the left of a heading. A triangle appears.
  2. Click the triangle to collapse the section. It turns into a right-pointing arrow.
  3. Click it again to expand the section.
Document with the collapse triangle next to a heading highlighted and the right-click Expand/Collapse menu showing Collapse All Headings
(1) Click the triangle next to a heading to collapse it, or (2) right-click and choose Collapse All Headings. (Illustration)

Step 3: Collapse or expand all headings

  1. Right-click any heading.
  2. Point to Expand/Collapse.
  3. Choose Collapse All Headings or Expand All Headings.

Make headings collapsed when the document opens

  1. Click in the heading you want collapsed by default.
  2. On the Home tab, click the small arrow in the corner of the Paragraph group to open the Paragraph dialog.
  3. On the Indents and Spacing tab, next to Outline level, check Collapsed by default.
  4. Click OK.

To apply this to every heading of a level, right-click the heading style in the Styles gallery, choose Modify > Format > Paragraph, and check Collapsed by default there.

Use the Navigation Pane too

Click View and check Navigation Pane (or press Ctrl + F and click Headings). The pane lists your headings, and you can collapse levels and drag headings to reorder whole sections.

Things to know

  • Collapsed text still prints. Word prints the whole document, even collapsed sections.
  • Collapse state isn’t always saved. Headings open expanded unless you set Collapsed by default.
  • Other people see their own view. Collapsing doesn’t hide text from anyone else who opens the document.
  • Word for the web may not show the collapse triangles. Use the desktop app for this feature.

Troubleshooting

  • No triangle appears. Make sure the paragraph uses a Heading style, or has an outline level other than Body Text in the Paragraph dialog.
  • Collapsing hides too much. A heading collapses everything until the next heading of the same or higher level. Use lower-level headings for subsections.
  • You can’t find collapsed text. Right-click a heading and choose Expand All Headings.

Related: View headings in Word.

Frequently asked questions

Can I collapse text that isn’t under a heading?

No. Only content under a heading (or a paragraph with an outline level) can be collapsed.

Does search find text in collapsed sections?

Yes. Word’s Find expands the section to show the match.

Can I do this in Google Docs?

Yes. See how to make collapsible sections in Google Docs.

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