How to Delete a Header in Word: Step-by-Step

Updated 7 November 2026 · Standard formula, shown below

This guide shows you how to remove a header from a Microsoft Word document, whether you want to delete it from every page, just the first page, or only specific sections. You’ll learn the exact menu paths for both Windows and Mac versions, plus how to avoid the most common pitfalls. No prior experience is needed—just open your document and follow along.

What You’ll Need

A Microsoft Word document containing a header you want to remove (Word 2016, 2019, 2021, or Microsoft 365).
Access to the document’s editing view (not Read Mode).

Step-by-Step

Open your document in Word. Double-click the file or open Word and navigate to it. Make sure you’re in the default editing view—if you see a “Read Mode” button on the status bar, click it to switch to “Print Layout” or “Draft” view.
Enter the header area. The quickest way is to double-click the very top margin of any page, where the header text appears. Alternatively, go to the Insert tab and click Header (in the “Header & Footer” group), then choose Edit Header. This opens the header pane and displays the “Header & Footer” tab on the ribbon.
Select all header content. Press Ctrl+A (Windows) or Command+A (Mac) while your cursor is inside the header area. This selects all text, images, and other elements in that header. If you only want to delete part of it, click and drag to select just that portion.
Delete the content. Press Delete or Backspace on your keyboard. The header area will become empty. If you have multiple sections in your document, this only removes the header for the current section (see “Common Mistakes” below).
Close the header pane. Click the red Close Header and Footer button on the “Header & Footer” tab, or double-click anywhere in the main document body. Your header is now gone from that section.
Remove headers from all sections (if needed). If your document has multiple sections (e.g., different chapters with different headers), you must repeat the steps above for each section. To check, go to the Layout tab and look for “Breaks” — if there are section breaks, you’ll need to edit each section’s header individually.
Delete the header from the first page only (optional). If you want the header to appear on all pages except the first, double-click the header, then on the “Header & Footer” tab, check the box that says Different First Page. This removes the header from the first page without affecting the rest. To remove it from all pages, leave this box unchecked.
Save your changes. Press Ctrl+S (Windows) or Command+S (Mac). If you want to keep a copy of the original, use “Save As” to create a new file.

Common Mistakes

Deleting only the text, not the header itself. In Word, a header is a container. Even if you delete all text, the header area still exists and will appear as an empty space at the top of the page. To truly remove it, you must also clear the header content, which you’ve done, but if you later type in the header area, it will reappear. To fully remove the header space, you may need to adjust the header distance (see Tips).
Forgetting about section breaks. If your document uses section breaks, deleting a header in one section does not affect others. You must repeat the process for each section. To check, go to Home > Show/Hide ¶ to display section breaks.
Unchecking “Link to Previous” unintentionally. When you edit a header in a later section, it may be linked to the previous section. If you unlink it, you must delete the header separately. If you want to remove headers from all sections, keep the link active (or check the link status) and delete the header in the first section.
Using “Remove Header” from the Insert menu. The Insert > Header > Remove Header option only removes the header from the current section, not the whole document. It also does not remove the header space—it just clears the content.

Tips

Remove the header space entirely. If you want to eliminate the empty gap at the top of the page, double-click the header, go to the “Header & Footer” tab, and reduce the “Header from Top” value (e.g., to 0). This brings the body text up.
Use “Different First Page” for title pages. Instead of deleting the header from the first page manually, use the built-in option—it’s cleaner and easier to undo.
Use “Remove Header” for quick clearing. If you just want to clear the content quickly, select all (Ctrl+A) and press Delete. This is faster than the menu.
Check the footer too. Often headers and footers are set up together. If you want a completely clean page, also double-click the bottom margin and delete footer content.
Work in “Print Layout” view. This shows the header and footer as they will appear on the printed page, making it easier to see what you’re doing.

Troubleshooting

The header reappears after deletion. This usually happens because you’re editing the wrong section, or because the header is linked to a previous section. Go to the first section of the document and delete the header there. Also, check if “Link to Previous” is active—if it is, deleting from the first section will clear all linked sections.
The header is still visible on the first page. Make sure “Different First Page” is unchecked (unless you want it that way). To check, double-click the header, go to the “Header & Footer” tab, and uncheck the box if it’s checked.
You can’t select the header content. Try clicking directly on the header text. If that doesn’t work, click the Insert tab > Header > Edit Header to enter the header pane. Sometimes the header is empty but still takes up space—in that case, just reduce the “Header from Top” value.
The header is not deleting because it’s a cover page field. Some templates use a “Cover Page” feature that includes a header. Delete the entire cover page element by selecting it and pressing Delete, or go to Insert > Cover Page > Remove Cover Page.
Changes don’t apply to the whole document. This is almost always due to section breaks. Go to Home > Show/Hide ¶ to see where sections start and end. Then edit the header in each section individually, or unlink sections and delete headers one by one.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I delete a header from only the first page?

Double-click the header, then on the “Header & Footer” tab, check the “Different First Page” box. This removes the header from the first page only. To remove it from all pages, leave the box unchecked.

Why does my header keep coming back?

Most likely because your document has multiple sections. Each section has its own header, and if they are linked, deleting one may not affect others. Check for section breaks and delete the header in each section, or unlink them and delete individually.

Can I delete a header without removing the text from the body?

Yes. The header is a separate area. Deleting the header content does not affect the body text. If the header contains a page number, deleting it will remove the page number from that section.

How do I remove a header in Word on a Mac?

The steps are the same as on Windows: double-click the header, select all content, press Delete, then close the header pane. The menu options are in the same locations.

What if I only want to remove the header from the last page?

This is trickier because Word doesn’t have a “Different Last Page” option. You would need to insert a section break before the last page, then edit the header in that new section and delete it there.

Does deleting a header also delete the footer?

No. Headers and footers are separate. You must delete them separately. However, if you use the “Remove Header” command, it only affects the header, not the footer.

Method: the standard formula for this calculation, rounded as each result states. See how the calculators work or report an error.