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In MS Word how do I not count the table of contents in the page numbers?

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Here’s a simple step‑by‑step guide to add page numbers in Word that start after the Table of Contents (TOC), on the first page of your main content. This works in Word 2016 / 2019 / 365 on Windows.

Step 1 – Insert a section break after the TOC
Place the cursor at the very end of the Table of Contents, after the last line.

  • Go to the Layout (or Page Layout) tab on the ribbon.
  • Click Breaks → then choose Next Page under Section Breaks.
  • This will create a new section starting on the page where your main content begins.

Step 2 – Break the link between sections
Go to the first page of your main content (the page where you want page numbers to start).

  • Double‑click in the Footer (or Header) area at the bottom (or top) of the page.
  • The Header & Footer tab appears.
  • On the Header & Footer tab, look for the button Link to Previous and click it so it turns off.
  • This unlinks the footer of this section from the TOC section.

Step 3 – Insert page numbers but start at “1”
With the footer still open, on the Header & Footer tab, click Page Number.

  • Choose Bottom of Page (or Top of Page) and then pick a style (e.g., Plain Number 1).
  • Click Page Number again and choose Format Page Numbers.
  • In the dialog box:
  • Select Start at.
  • Type 1.

Click OK.

Close the Header & Footer (click Close Header & Footer or press Esc).

In MS Word how do I not count the table of contents in the page numbers?

Here’s a simple step‑by‑step guide to add page numbers in Word that start after the Table of Contents (TOC), on the first page of your main content. This works in Word 2016 / 2019 / 365 on Windows.

Step 1 – Insert a section break after the TOC
Place the cursor at the very end of the Table of Contents, after the last line.

  • Go to the Layout (or Page Layout) tab on the ribbon.
  • Click Breaks → then choose Next Page under Section Breaks.
  • This will create a new section starting on the page where your main content begins.

Step 2 – Break the link between sections
Go to the first page of your main content (the page where you want page numbers to start).

  • Double‑click in the Footer (or Header) area at the bottom (or top) of the page.
  • The Header & Footer tab appears.
  • On the Header & Footer tab, look for the button Link to Previous and click it so it turns off.
  • This unlinks the footer of this section from the TOC section.

Step 3 – Insert page numbers but start at “1”
With the footer still open, on the Header & Footer tab, click Page Number.

  • Choose Bottom of Page (or Top of Page) and then pick a style (e.g., Plain Number 1).
  • Click Page Number again and choose Format Page Numbers.
  • In the dialog box:
  • Select Start at.
  • Type 1.

Click OK.

Close the Header & Footer (click Close Header & Footer or press Esc).