Clicking Word’s Home > Center button won’t move your text halfway down the page. Vertical centering uses a separate setting, and the right control depends on whether your text is on the page, inside a table, or in a text box. Here’s where to find each one.
Center page text vertically on Windows
In Word for Microsoft 365, Word 2024, or Word 2021 for Windows, select the text you want to center vertically.
Open Layout and click the Page Setup dialog box launcher. In the dialog, select the Layout tab.
Set Vertical alignment to Center.
Set Apply to to Selected text, then select OK. Word centers the text between the top and bottom margins.
Find the page alignment setting on a Mac
In Word for Microsoft 365 for Mac, Word 2024 for Mac, or Word 2021 for Mac, place the insertion point in the text you want to center.
Open Format > Document.
Select the Layout tab.
Choose Center under Vertical alignment.
Confirm with OK.
For text inside a table or text box, use the container’s own alignment setting below.
Open browser documents in desktop Word
Page-level vertical alignment in Word for the web requires an installed, licensed desktop copy of Word.
- 1.Select Editing > Open in Desktop App.
- 2.Follow the Windows or Mac page-centering steps above to set Vertical alignment to Center.
- 3.Save the document.
Adjust vertical alignment inside a table cell
When your text sits inside a table, use the cell’s alignment setting. This route applies to Word for Microsoft 365 and Word 2021 on Windows.
Click inside the cell you want to change.
Right-click and select Table Properties.
Open the Cell tab.
Under Vertical alignment, select Center.
Confirm with OK.
The tab matters here: Alignment on the Table tab controls the horizontal position of the entire table.
Put text in the middle of a text box
Text boxes have their own vertical alignment control, labeled Middle. These paths apply to Word for Microsoft 365, Word 2024, and Word 2021 on Windows and Mac.
On Windows, right-click the text box or shape’s border and select Format Shape.
Open Size/Layout & Properties.
In the Text Box settings, set Vertical alignment to Middle.
On a Mac, select the text box’s border.
Open Shape Format > Format Pane > Shape Options.
Select the text box icon.
Open Text Box.
Set Vertical alignment to Middle.
If the text still isn’t centered inside the box, select its border again and check Text Box > Vertical alignment > Middle. Text Direction changes the text’s orientation, so it won’t perform this adjustment.
Move the whole text box to the page’s middle
Use object alignment to move a text box or WordArt object itself to the vertical middle of the page. This works in desktop Word for Microsoft 365, Word 2024, and Word 2021 on Windows and Mac.
Select the object you want to move.
Open Shape Format > Align or Shape Format > Arrange > Align, using the path shown on your ribbon.
On a Mac, choose Align to Page to use the page as the reference, or Align to Margin to use the margins, then open Align again. Microsoft’s Windows instructions go straight to the alignment commands in the Align menu.
Select Align Middle.
If alignment is unavailable, change Wrap Text from In Line with Text to another wrapping option.
Apply Align Middle again.
Moving the box and centering the text inside it are separate adjustments. Use the previous section to position the text within the box.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Ctrl+E a shortcut for vertical centering in Word?
No. Ctrl+E centers paragraphs horizontally. It does not change their vertical position on the page.
Can I center page text vertically in Word on my phone?
Microsoft directs iOS and Android users to desktop Word for page-level vertical alignment. Open the document in Word on Windows or Mac and use the page-centering steps above.
Can I save a vertically centered layout for future documents?
Yes. In Word for Microsoft 365, Word 2024, or Word 2021 on Windows, apply the centering and save the document as a .dotx template. Use .dotm if the template includes macros. Open the template to create future documents with the prepared layout.
Does Word have a ready-made cover page with centered text?
Yes. In Word for Microsoft 365, Word 2024, or Word 2021 on Windows, open Insert > Cover Page and select a design with the centered placement you want. Word inserts it at the beginning of the document. Check the design before choosing it, because not every cover layout centers its text vertically.
