How to Use Styles in Microsoft Word

About Stephanie Hutcheson

Stephanie D. Hutcheson is a seasoned trainer who brings over 30 years of experience to share. She has a BA in Business and a Masters Degree as well as Microsoft, AI and Project Management certifications. Stephanie is not all work! She is an avid tennis, pickleball and golf enthusiast. Between sports and work, she shares her time and resources with Bridges to Community – a non-profit house building group and Habitat for Humanity.

Executive Summary

Styles help you apply consistent formatting across your document and enable features like automatic tables of contents, easy navigation, and quick global updates.

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OBJECTIVES

  • Apply a Style
  • Modify a Style
  • Create a New Style
  • Use Styles with Navigation Pane
  • Discuss Pros and Cons of Styles and Bookmarks

 5 Practical Applications of Bookmarks in Microsoft Word

Styles vs Manual Formatting in Microsoft Word

Feature / Functionality✅ Styles⚠️ Manual Formatting
ConsistencyEnsures uniform formatting across the documentRequires manual repetition; prone to errors
EfficiencyApply or update formatting in one clickMust format each section individually
Navigation Pane SupportHeadings appear automatically for easy navigationNo integration with Navigation Pane
Table of Contents (TOC)Automatically builds TOC from heading stylesCannot generate TOC without styles
Global UpdatesModify a style once to update all instancesMust find and reformat each occurrence
Template IntegrationStyles can be saved in templates (.dotx)Manual formatting must be recreated each time
Visual ControlCentralized control over font, spacing, etc.Formatting decisions are scattered
Learning CurveRequires initial setup and understandingFamiliar to most users; intuitive
Best ForStructured documents, reports, guidesQuick edits, one-off formatting
Risk of InconsistencyLow—style rules enforce uniformityHigh—manual changes may vary across sections

Apply a Style

  1. Select the text you want to format.
  2. Go to: Home → Styles Group → Desired Style
    Examples: Heading 1, Heading 2, Normal, Quote, etc.
  3. Hover to preview, click to apply.

Modify a Style

  1. Right-click the style in the Styles Group.
  2. Choose Modify.
  3. Adjust font, size, spacing, color, etc.
  4. Click OK to save changes.

Create a New Style

  1. Home → Styles Group → More (down arrow) → Create a Style
  2. Name your style.
  3. Click Modify to customize formatting.
  4. Click OK to save.

Use Styles with the Navigation Pane

  1. View → Show Group → Navigation Pane
  2. In the pane, click Headings tab.
  3. Any text formatted with Heading 1, Heading 2, etc. will appear as clickable sections.
  4. Click a heading to jump to that section instantly.

Bookmarks vs Styles Pros and Cons

✅ Precise Navigation: Jump to exact locations, even mid-paragraph.

✅ Flexible Placement: Can be applied to text, objects, or blank spaces.

✅ Supports Hyperlinking: Easily link from anywhere in the document.

✅ Non-Visual Markers: Doesn’t affect formatting or layout.

✅ Useful for Automation: Can be referenced in macros or scripts.

Cons

❌ No Visual Indicator: Users can’t see bookmarks unless they enable visibility.

❌ Manual Management: No automatic updates if content shifts.

❌ Naming Restrictions: No spaces or special characters allowed.

❌ Limited Organization: No hierarchy or grouping like styles.

❌ Not Ideal for Formatting: Doesn’t apply visual or structural changes.

Final Thoughts

Word styles are like magical wardrobe changes for your text—one click and your document struts with confidence. They keep everything coordinated like a well-rehearsed dance troupe. Once you embrace styles, manual formatting feels like mismatched socks at a gala.

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