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Word applies headers and footers to sections, not individual pages. To remove one from a page in the middle of a document, isolate that page in its own section, turn off Link to Previous for the relevant header or footer, then remove it. A regular page break is not enough.
For the first page of a section, you can instead use Different First Page. The steps below also explain how to remove headers or footers from a range of pages, hide only a page number, and fix common problems.
Remove a header or footer from the first page
If the page is the first page of the document, or already the first page of a section, use Word’s built-in first-page setting.
- Double-click inside the first-page header or footer.
- On the Header & Footer tab, select Different First Page.
- The first-page header or footer becomes an independent area. Leave it blank or delete its contents.
- Select Close Header and Footer, or press Esc.
Different First Page applies to the first page of the current section, not necessarily page 1 of the whole document. Each section can have its own first-page header and footer.
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Remove a header or footer from one page in the middle
To remove an item from exactly one middle page, create a section containing only that page. You need a section break before it and another after it.
1. Show formatting marks
Go to Home > Show/Hide (¶). Word displays page breaks, paragraph marks, and section breaks, making it easier to check the type of break at the page boundary.
2. Insert a section break before the page
- Click at the beginning of the page where the header or footer should disappear.
- Choose Layout > Breaks > Next Page.
Next Page starts a new section on the following page. If the target page already begins after a regular page break, remove that page break and insert the section break instead. A page break changes pagination; it does not create an independently formatted section.
3. Insert a section break after the page
- Click at the beginning of the page immediately after the target page.
- Choose Layout > Breaks > Next Page again.
The target page is now its own section. Without the second break, the header or footer change applies to the target page and following pages in that section.
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Headers and footers are linked independently, so do this separately for each item you want to remove.
- Double-click inside the target page’s header.
- On the Header & Footer tab, select Link to Previous to turn it off.
- If you also want to remove the footer, double-click inside the target page’s footer and turn off Link to Previous there too.
Unlink before deleting or editing content. While Link to Previous is enabled, the target section shares that header or footer with the preceding section, so changes can propagate.
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5. Remove the header or footer
- For the header, choose Header > Remove Header.
- For the footer, choose Footer > Remove Footer.
Repeat for the other item if needed. Select Close Header and Footer, or press Esc, when finished.
Quick reference
| Goal | What to use |
|---|---|
| Remove a header or footer from a section’s first page | Different First Page |
| Remove it from one middle page | Section break before and after the page |
| Remove it from consecutive pages | Section break before the range and another after it |
| Remove only the header | Unlink the header, then choose Remove Header |
| Remove only the footer | Unlink the footer, then choose Remove Footer |
| Remove only a page number | Unlink the relevant header or footer, then delete the page-number field or use the appropriate page-number removal command |
Remove headers or footers from a range of pages
To remove an item from several consecutive pages:
- Place a Layout > Breaks > Next Page section break before the first affected page.
- Place another Next Page section break after the last affected page.
- Open the header or footer in the affected section.
- Turn off Link to Previous for that header or footer.
- Choose Header > Remove Header or Footer > Remove Footer.
The pages between the two breaks form the affected section. Later sections remain separate, provided they are not still linked to the changed section.
Remove only a page number
A page number is usually a field inside a header or footer. To hide only the number while keeping other content:
- Isolate the page with section breaks.
- Open the header or footer containing the number.
- Turn off Link to Previous for that area.
- Select and delete the page-number field, or use the appropriate page-number removal command.
If you want to adjust numbering rather than remove it, use Header & Footer > Page Number > Format Page Numbers. Depending on the section’s settings, numbering may continue, restart, or use a different format.
When odd and even pages are different
Word can maintain separate header and footer content for a section’s first page, odd-numbered pages, and even-numbered pages. To enable odd/even variations, open a header or footer and select Different Odd & Even Pages.
Each header/footer type has its own Link to Previous relationship. If the option is enabled, unlink the relevant types separately. Depending on the page and section settings, these may include:
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- First Page Header and First Page Footer
- Header and Footer
- Even Page Header and Even Page Footer
Unlinking an odd-page header does not automatically unlink the even-page header or either footer.
If the target page is already a section’s first page
Check whether a section break already appears immediately before the page. If so, you may not need to add another break. Open the page’s header or footer and select Different First Page.
This changes the first-page header or footer setting for that section, which is useful for a cover page or chapter title page.
Word for the web limitation
Word for the web can edit some header and footer content, but it cannot add section breaks. It therefore cannot reliably remove a header or footer from a specific middle page using the standard method.
Select Open in Word to use the desktop application, then create the required sections with Layout > Breaks > Next Page. Microsoft documents the procedure for Word for Microsoft 365, Word for Microsoft 365 for Mac, Word 2024, Word 2024 for Mac, Word 2021, Word 2021 for Mac, Word 2019, Word 2019 for Mac, and Word 2016.
Common problems and fixes
The header disappears from later pages too
You may have inserted a section break only before the target page. Add another Layout > Breaks > Next Page break after the last affected page. A page needs to be bounded by section breaks to isolate it.
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Changing the target header changes the previous pages
Link to Previous is still enabled. Open the target section’s header and turn off the link before editing. Repeat in the footer if needed.
The footer still appears after unlinking the header
Word treats headers and footers as separate objects. Unlink the footer independently.
Link to Previous is dimmed
Word may not detect a preceding section break at the cursor’s location. Turn on Home > Show/Hide (¶) and check that the break before the target section is a section break, not a page break.
A blank page appears
Check whether an extra manual page break remains, a paragraph has Page break before enabled, or an Odd Page or Even Page section break is moving the next section to the required parity. Also check for a section break positioned at the end of the document. For ordinary header and footer removal, use Next Page, not an odd- or even-page break.
Deleting a section break changes the document layout
Deleting a section break merges the surrounding content into one section. Word applies the formatting of the section that followed the deleted break. If you only need to restore shared header or footer behavior, use Link to Previous rather than deleting the break.
A continuous section break pushes content to another page
A Continuous section break is intended to start the next section on the same page, but some layouts can cause it to create another page. For removing a header or footer from a full page, use Next Page.
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If you meant a heading, not a header
A heading is text in the document body, such as a chapter title formatted with Heading 1. A header is the repeated area at the top of a page. To remove a body heading from one page, select and delete its text, or change its style through Home > Styles. If the same text appears at the top of every page, it may be a header, and the section-break method applies.
For Microsoft’s reference procedure, see Change or delete a header or footer on a single page, Insert a section break, and Link to previous.
FAQ
Can I remove a header from one page using a page break?
No. A page break only changes pagination. Insert section breaks before and after the target page, then turn off Link to Previous.
Why does Remove Header affect several pages?
Remove Header applies to the current section. If that section covers multiple pages or remains linked to another section, the change can affect those pages too.
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Do I need to unlink the header and footer separately?
Yes. Word links them independently. Turn off Link to Previous in the header, then repeat in the footer if needed.
Can Word for the web remove a footer from one middle page?
Not reliably by itself, because Word for the web cannot add section breaks. Open the document in the desktop Word app.
How do I remove a header from the first page only?
Open the header, select Different First Page, and leave the first-page header blank. This setting applies to the first page of the current section.
The Bottom Line
For a section’s first page, use Different First Page. For a middle page, add Layout > Breaks > Next Page section breaks before and after it, turn off Link to Previous for the relevant header or footer, then remove that item. Headers and footers are section-based, not page-based.
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