Design and edit tables in Word

  • Tables in Word organize information in a clear and accessible way.
  • Editing them is easy; you can easily add, delete or adjust rows and columns.
  • Word allows you to convert text to tables and draw custom tables.
  • Changing styles and formats improves the aesthetic presentation of your data.

How to edit tables in Word

Microsoft's word processor is one of the most popular worldwide, and has millions of users. In fact, other word processors are clearly inspired by it. If what you want is to get the most out of it when preparing documents, then you have to know one of its most practical features, that of edit tables in Word.

Tables are a perfect format to offer information in a summarized manner, and they give good results with both figures and text. Hence, it is interesting to use them in academic works and professional reports. Let's see how you can make and edit them like an expert.

Advantages of using Word tables

Advantages of learning to edit tables in Word

As we said a moment ago, this system allows us to organize and present information in a more accessible way. If we have to highlight the benefits of this format, we cannot fail to refer to:

  • Data organization. The main purpose of a table is for the information to be displayed in a structured way, dividing the content into rows and columns that allow a better interpretation of the information.
  • Aesthetic presentation. A table is a “clean” way to provide a large amount of data to the reader. In addition, Word offers us the possibility of reinforcing its aesthetics with different styles and colors.
  • Alignment and distribution. The table format allows you to organize the content in a precise way. This can be adjusted to create a visually appealing design.
  • Import of external data. Word's integration with other Microsoft applications allows you to import data from outside and use it to create tables within a text document.
  • Ease of editing. Editing Word tables is very simple. We can add or delete rows and columns, adjust the content, change the size and make all kinds of formatting changes very easily.

Tricks to create tables in Word

The tricks to edit your Word table.

Creating a table in Word is very simple. We just have to go to the menu and follow the route "Insert" > "Board". However, there are some tricks that allow us to work faster and more efficiently.

Create a basic table

Go to the tab "Insert" in the menu bar, select "Table" and drag the cursor over the grid to define the number of rows and columns.

If you do not have much experience with this functionality, we advise you to start by designing simple tables. Don't worry if you've fallen short on rows or columns or gone too far, because It is possible to edit tables in Word and make these adjustments later.

Convert text to table

If you have a text with information that would be interesting to collect in a table, you can do it very simply:

Select the text in question.
Go to "Insert" > "Table" > “Convert text to table”.

Draw the table

If you want to design a table in your style and completely freely, Word allows you to do so through the option “Draw table” What will you find inside the tab? "Design".

This can be useful for creating completely custom tables where a standardized format is not recommended or cannot be used.

Keyboard shortcuts

To edit the content of the table, press “Alt + Shift + F5” and the cursor returns to the last location where you edited the table. This you avoids having to use the mouse.

How to edit a table in Word

This is how you can edit the Word table

Here are some basic notions with which you will be able to edit tables in Word like a true expert.

Insert or delete rows and columns

To insert rows or columns:

  • Click the cell where you want to add a row or column.
  • Go to the tab "Design" in the menu bar.
  • Choose “Insert above” o “Insert below” if you want to add a row. O well “Insert left” o “Insert right” if what you want is to add one or more columns.

To delete rows or columns:

Select the row or column that is left over.

See the tab "Design" > "Remove" > “Delete rows” o “Delete columns”.

If you click on the table with the right mouse button, a pop-up menu appears in which you also have different options at your disposal to insert or delete rows and cells and perform other editing options like the ones we are going to see.

Combine or split cells

Merging involves joining two or more cells into one, while dividing splits the contents of one cell into several.

To achieve this, you just have to:

Select the cells in question.

Ir a "Design" and select “Merge cells” o “Divide cells”.

Resize columns or rows

When editing tables in Word we are interested in taking care of aesthetics and, therefore, it is convenient to adjust the size of rows and cells.

Automatic adjustment

If you double click on the line that separates two columns or two rows, you make the width of the column or row automatically adjust to the content.

Manual adjustment

Select the column or row that interests you and drag the separation line until you reach the distance that seems right to you.

Change style and format

To change the style of the table, select it and go to the tab "Design", then choose “Table style” and choose the one that best suits your tastes.

If what you want is to modify the borders and the padding, in the tab "Design" You have different alternatives at your disposal to make aesthetic changes.

Embed content

Adding content to the table is as simple as clicking on a cell and starting to write or paste the content that we have cut from somewhere else. We also have the option to add images or other graphic elements within the cells.

Sort and filter data

To sort the data within the table, select the cell, go to "Design" and choose the option "Order". In case you want to filter the table data, what you can do is use the filter options available in the menu bar.

With these basic steps you can edit a table in Word quickly and get a good result. Do you dare to put them into practice?


Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked with *

*

*

  1. Responsible for the data: Miguel Ángel Gatón
  2. Purpose of the data: Control SPAM, comment management.
  3. Legitimation: Your consent
  4. Communication of the data: The data will not be communicated to third parties except by legal obligation.
  5. Data storage: Database hosted by Occentus Networks (EU)
  6. Rights: At any time you can limit, recover and delete your information.