How to Change Line Spacing in Word (and Remove Extra Gaps)
Your college wants double spacing. Your boss hates the big gaps between paragraphs. You pasted some text and now it's spaced differently from everything else. Here's how to take control of spacing in Word.
Change line spacing
1. Select the text you want to change. (Press Ctrl + A to select the whole document.)
2. On the Home tab, click the Line and Paragraph Spacing button (lines with up and down arrows).
3. Choose 1.0 (single), 1.15, 1.5, 2.0 (double) or more.
2. On the Home tab, click the Line and Paragraph Spacing button (lines with up and down arrows).
3. Choose 1.0 (single), 1.15, 1.5, 2.0 (double) or more.
Keyboard shortcuts
With text selected:
| Shortcut | Spacing |
|---|---|
| Ctrl + 1 | Single |
| Ctrl + 5 | 1.5 lines |
| Ctrl + 2 | Double |
On a Mac, use Command instead of Ctrl.
Line spacing vs paragraph spacing
There are two different kinds of space in Word, and mixing them up causes most of the confusion:
• Line spacing — the space between lines inside a paragraph.
• Paragraph spacing — the extra gap before or after each paragraph (each time you press Enter).
• Paragraph spacing — the extra gap before or after each paragraph (each time you press Enter).
If your text looks fine within paragraphs but there's a big gap each time you press Enter, it's paragraph spacing you need to change.
Remove the extra space between paragraphs
1. Select the text.
2. Click the Line and Paragraph Spacing button.
3. Choose Remove Space After Paragraph (and/or Remove Space Before Paragraph if it appears).
2. Click the Line and Paragraph Spacing button.
3. Choose Remove Space After Paragraph (and/or Remove Space Before Paragraph if it appears).
Set exact spacing
For precise control:
1. Select the text.
2. Click Line and Paragraph Spacing > Line Spacing Options… (or right-click and choose Paragraph).
3. Under Spacing:
• Before and After — set the gap around paragraphs in points (for example, 0 pt and 8 pt).
• Line spacing — choose Single, 1.5 lines, Double, or Multiple and type a value like 1.2.
4. Click OK.
2. Click Line and Paragraph Spacing > Line Spacing Options… (or right-click and choose Paragraph).
3. Under Spacing:
• Before and After — set the gap around paragraphs in points (for example, 0 pt and 8 pt).
• Line spacing — choose Single, 1.5 lines, Double, or Multiple and type a value like 1.2.
4. Click OK.
Tip: Tick Don't add space between paragraphs of the same style to keep bullet lists tight while normal paragraphs keep their gaps.
Change spacing for the whole document at once
Go to the Design tab and click Paragraph Spacing. Choose a preset like No Paragraph Space, Compact, Tight or Double. This changes the document's styles, so it applies everywhere — including new text you type.
Make it the default for new documents
1. Right-click any paragraph and choose Paragraph.
2. Set the spacing you want.
3. Click Set As Default (bottom left).
4. Choose All documents based on the Normal template and click OK.
2. Set the spacing you want.
3. Click Set As Default (bottom left).
4. Choose All documents based on the Normal template and click OK.
Every new blank document will now start with your spacing.
Troubleshooting
One paragraph won't change. It may use a different style, or have "Exactly" set as its line spacing. Open Line Spacing Options and check the settings.
The first line of text is cut off. Line spacing is set to Exactly with a value smaller than the font size. Change it to Single or At least.
Pasted text has different spacing. Paste with Ctrl + Shift + V (Keep Text Only) so it takes the formatting of your document.
Wrapping up
Ctrl + 1, Ctrl + 5 and Ctrl + 2 for single, 1.5 and double. If the problem is the gap between paragraphs, use Remove Space After Paragraph — and Set As Default once you've found spacing you like.
