how to add page numbers and header in word

Placing important information into the header of a document can be useful to your readers. It's also fairly common for schools and organizations to require specific types of information in that location. Therefore you may need to know how to add your last name and page numbers in Microsoft Word.

A common formatting option if your school or organization uses MLA involves adding your last name and page numbering at the top-right of the page. But if you have never done this before in Microsoft Word it can be a little confusing.

Luckily Microsoft Word has several options for adding page numbers to the header or footer of the document, and you can even customize those further if you need a different first page or title page. Our step by step guide below is going to show you how to insert your last name and page number in a Microsoft Word document.

How to Add Last Name and Page Number in Word

Open the document in Microsoft Word.
Select theInsert tab at the top of the window.
Click thePage Number button, then choose the desired location for the page numbers.
Click in the header/footer next to the page number then type your last name, followed by a space.

Our article continues below with additional information on adding your last name and page number in Microsoft Word, including pictures of these steps.

How to Put Your Last Name Next to the Page Number in Microsoft Word

The steps in this article were performed in the Microsoft Word for Office 365 version of the application. I am going to be using the Top of Page option for my page numbers, and placing those page numbers at the right side of the header. The last name will then be added to the left of the page number, where I will also manually add a space so that the name and page number have some separation.

Step 1: Open the Microsoft Word document to which you wish to add your last name and page number.

Step 2: Select theInsert tab above the ribbon to open the Insert menu.

Step 3: Click thePage Number button in theHeader & Footer section of the ribbon, then choose the location for the page number.

As mentioned earlier I am selectingTop of Page and thePlain Number 3 option, which places the page number at the top right of each page.

choose the desired location for the page number

Step 4: Click next to the page number and type your last name, followed by a space.

how to add last name and page number in Microsoft Word

You can then return to the document body if you double-click on any part of it. You can also double-click inside the footer or header area later if you need to edit some of the information that you have added to that location.

We previously mentioned that while you can add page numbers to every page with this method, it doesn't provide the desired result if you don't want to have a page number on the first page of your document, or if you have a title page on which you don't want a page number.

You can adjust this by double-clicking inside the header or footer of the document, then checking the box to the left ofDifferent First Page in theOptions section of the ribbon.

Microsoft Word page numbers Different First Page option

This removes the page number from the first page of the document, but keeps the page numbers on subsequent pages. Note that the page numbering starts on with "2" on the second page of the document when you select this option and will continue for the entire document.

If you wish to start with "1" on that second page then you will need to click theInsert tab, clickPage Number, then chooseFormat Page Numbers from the drop-down menu. This opens the Page Number Format dialog box. There you will click the circle to the left ofStart at, then enter "0" into that field and click theOK button.

how to change page numbering in Microsoft Word

Note in the image above that there are a couple of other options on this menu that let you format page numbers in other ways, or add additional information or elements to your header or footer.

If you also use Google Docs and need to be able to add your last name and page number there, then this article will show you how.

Additional Reading

Kermit Matthews is a freelance writer based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with more than a decade of experience writing technology guides. He has a Bachelor's and Master's degree in Computer Science and has spent much of his professional career in IT management.

He specializes in writing content about iPhones, Android devices, Microsoft Office and many other popular applications and devices.