The easiest way to number pages in a Microsoft Word document is to click on the Insert menu and select Page Numbers, and choose to have the numbers either at the top of the page in the Header space or at the bottom of the page in the Footer space. This dialog box also allows you to choose whether you would like to have a page number on the first page of your document. Also, if you choose to start your numbering from a number other than 1, you can click the Format button and type in whatever number you would like to start with.
If you find that you need something a bit more complex, there are different strategies to use. For example, if you would like your page numbers to be shown as 1 of n (n being the total number of pages in your document) you would follow the steps below:
Click on View and select Header and Footer.
Once you have set up Headers and Footers, double-clicking on either of them will achieve the same thing and is much quicker.
Once you have opened the Header or Footer, your document text is grayed out and you will see a box at the top of the page labeled Header. You will also see the Header and Footer toolbar.
Assuming you want to place your page numbers in the Footer area, click the ninth icon on the Header and Footer toolbar, shown highlighted in yellow above. This will switch you to the Footer area at the bottom of your page.
Once you are in the Footer area, click on the first icon you see on the Header and Footer toolbar, which will insert the current page number. Or you could simply click in the footer and type the word Page and a space and then click the first icon to insert the page number. You can also type another space and then go to the Insert menu and Select Field which will open up the Field dialog box. In the Categories pane on the left of the dialog box, select Page. Another way to do it would be to click on the Insert AutoText on the Header and Footer toolbar and select either Page, or Page x of y.
It is really quite a simple operation. You could even create a macro to it all for you if you so choose.
Carol Bratt is the Office Applications Editor at Daves Computer Tips. She has authored several informative Microsoft Office books and writes the monthly Word Bytes Newsletter with more tips and tricks in each issue. Visit Carol's website for more great Microsoft Office tips and tricks! Click here to see her latest books! You can read more about Carol here.