Most academic and non-academic documents with sections and different topics covered have a table of contents. This tutorial takes you through how to insert a table of content in Word online without much effort.
How to make table of content in Word Online
Case-1: On a PC
To make table of content in Word Online, follow the below steps.
- Open the document you would like to add the table of contents to. You can log into your Microsoft account or access the document from the OneDrive application.
- Once you have the document in front of you, double-click to open it.
3. You can now click on Reference on the main ribbon.
4. Under reference, you will have the Table of contents option
5. Click on it, and you will have a table of contents ready in no time.
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Error while trying to insert a table of contents in Word online
If you are trying to add a table of contents to your document but have an error popping up, you can do this.
Do not panic; this is a common error. It happens because the program cannot find the titles in your text. To fix this, you will first have to define the titles.
- Start by closing the dialogue box by clicking on OK
- Scroll through your document and look for headings and subheadings. we would generally bold or underline these.
- Highlight the headings
- Once the heading is highlighted, click on Home
- Now, under home, go to the Styles option
- here, and you will see the different styles available. the text is not in the Normal format. you will need to select Heading 1 for titles and Heading 2 for subtitles
- Repeat this process for all the headings and subheadings in the document.
- If you have too many and do not want to repeat the process, you can
- Change the format of 1 heading > highlight it and click on Format Painter
- This option copies the formatting of the text copied.
- You can now transfer this formatting to another text by selecting it.
- This process will have to be repeated for all the headings in the document.
Once you have all the headings and subheadings defined, you will be able to add the table of contents to the document. Follow the steps mentioned in the previous section, and you are good to go.
Read: How to update table of contents in Word online
Case-2:On Mac OS
Here is how to add a table of contents to a Word online document on a Mac OS system.
- Open the document you would like to add the table of contents to
- Click on the spot where you want to add the table
- Go to References > Table of contents
- Choose the Automatic Table of Contents option from the list
- Before creating the table of contents, define the heading and subheadings in the document. Without this, you cannot create a table of contents.
- Choose from the different styles available to format the look and feel of your table.
- If you have missed entries in the table, go back to the document
- Select the text you would like as a heading
- Click on Home > go to Styles
- Select Heading 1 for main headings and Heading 2 for subheadings
- You can now go to the table and hover over it with your mouse
- You will have an update option on the top
- Click on the update option to include the entries you missed.
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Frequently asked questions
Unfortunately, you cannot add a table of contents to a Word online document using your phone. You can, however, do it from some tablets, but that depends on the model and other specifications. Creating a table of contents from a laptop or desktop is better. This being said, you can format the document to add headings and subheadings to the text.
we suggest you do this on the go and then create a table once you have a laptop or desktop handy.
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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.