You often have to use Word to carry out your activities, but you are not a great expert and connoisseur of all the functions present in the well-known Microsoft suite program. By reading my various guides in this regard, you will surely have already learned to juggle in a more than good way in the basic use of the software, but what you now need is to go to the next level to learn some particular and specific notions on the peculiar functions of Word.
Going more specifically, you need to write an article setting the page on two separate columns, so you would need a tutorial on how to make two columns in Word . Well, if that’s the case, know that I’m here to help you and explain what you need. Thanks to a function included in Word, you can in fact set the page layout to be able to write on multiple columns in the same worksheet.
Even if you still have no idea how to do it, you absolutely need not worry! By following the basic steps that I will illustrate in this guide you will be perfectly able to draft documents by dividing the written part into several columns without any problem. Find everything explained below.
Index
- How to create two columns in Word
- How to create two columns in Word for PC / Mac
- How to create two columns in Word Online
- How to create two columns in Word mobile for smartphones and tablets
- How to align two columns in Word
- How to align two columns in Word for PC / Mac
- How to align two columns in Word Online
- How to align two columns in Word mobile for smartphones and tablets
- How to merge two columns in Word
- How to merge two columns in Word for PC / Mac
- How to merge two columns in Word Online
- How to merge two columns in Word mobile for smartphones and tablets
How to create two columns in Word
The steps to follow to create two columns in Word , as I told you, are not complex. However, it is good to keep in mind how this procedure may vary according to the version of Word, or rather, the device used. Here’s everything in detail.
How to create two columns in Word for PC / Mac
Let’s first see the procedure to create two columns on Word in the classic desktop version for PC and Mac (which, in case, you can download for free for a trial period as explained in this tutorial of mine ).
In this case, what you have to do, after opening Word and selecting the document to be edited, is to click on the Layout item , which you can find in the upper bar of the program options, in order to access the section dedicated to the settings regarding the arrangement of the elements on the text page.
Among the items in the section used for page layout management, click on the Columns button , to open the drop-down menu in which you can select the number of columns into which you want to divide the sheet, and then click on Two , to set the two-column structure of the page so that what you are going to write is arranged in two distinct sections within the same page.
By selecting item Two , the Word text sheet is in fact divided into two equal and homogeneous columns characterized by equal width and spacing. On the contrary, if you want to create two columns with different characteristics, you have three possibilities, always acting on the Columns menu of the Layout section : click on the item On the left to arrange the text on two columns, with the left column less wide than the right column ; click on the item To the right , to arrange the text on two columns, with the right column less wide than the left column or, finally, click on the item Other columnsto access a small control panel that allows you to manually set the number of columns and the width and spacing of these in total autonomy.
If you have already written the text in a single column and now want to divide it into two columns, don’t worry! You can easily do it by simply following the same steps I have just shown you: click on Layout , then on Columns and on Two to make sure that the text already present on the Word page is automatically divided into two distinct columns within the same sheet.
How to create two columns in Word Online
The online version of Word , accessible free of charge via browser by all holders of a Microsoft account , has limited functions compared to the desktop version for computers. Through Word Online it is not possible to create two columns without the support of the desktop version. However, in the online version there is a procedure to follow in order to be directly redirected to the desktop version and therefore to be able to set the layout of the text page in two columns.
All you have to do is click on the Layout item , present in the upper option bar of the online version of the program and then click on the Edit button , marked by an icon depicting a pen. Doing so opens a drop-down menu with different selectable options: click further on the Edit item or on Open in the desktop app , in order to make changes to the page layout in the desktop version of the program (which obviously must be present on the PC).
How to create two columns in Word mobile for smartphones and tablets
If you are using Word mobile on your smartphone or tablet (the app is available on Android , also on alternative stores , and on iOS / iPadOS and is free on all devices up to 10.1 “in size), you can create two columns quite simply.
First, select the document to edit and, if you are on a smartphone , press the button represented by a small triangular arrow that you can find at the bottom right of your device screen as a fixed element of the app options bar. Once this is done, a section dedicated to managing the document options opens at the bottom of the application. Press the Home button (flanked by an icon depicting two arrows) to open the drop-down menu containing the items of the typical Word functions. Then click on Layout to access the settings for the arrangement of the elements on the text page. At this point tap on Columns and finally press onTwo , Left or Right to create two columns of equal width or two columns of different widths. On a tablet , on the other hand, you can find everything in the top menu as on a PC.
Even with Word mobile you can divide text already written in a single column into two columns: to do this, go to the Home menu , then tap on Layout , press on Columns and select Two , to have the text split into two columns distinct on the same page.
How to align two columns in Word
After what we saw in the previous chapter, it is also advisable to understand how to align two columns in Word in order to be able to better manage the text written within the sections created. Also in this case we analyze the different procedures to follow in the different versions of Word.
How to align two columns in Word for PC / Mac
Using the desktop version of Word for PC or Mac , after creating two distinct and independent columns, you can align the contents of these to make your document and your written production homogeneous and linear.
To be able to do what has been said, open the document divided into columns that you intend to modify and that you intend to align with Word. Select the text contained in the two distinct columns by holding down the left mouse button and dragging the cursor on the Word page, or by clicking on the Select button , in the Edit area of the Home ribbon, and then pressing on Select all .
After selecting the text in the columns you want to align, you just have to choose one of the four options at your disposal: Align left , Align center , Align right and Justify .
Go with the cursor in the Paragraph area of the ribbon of the Home of Word and click on Align left to align the contents of the columns to the respective left margin, on Align in the center to center the contents of the columns within these, on Align on the right to align the contents of the columns to the respective right margin, and on Justify to evenly distribute the text contained in the columns between the margins of these.
How to align two columns in Word Online
If you have opened the document, in which you want to align the columns, on Word Online , don’t worry! In this case you can in fact make the change directly from the browser , without having to resort to the desktop version of the program.
Once Word Online has started and the document has been opened, it is sufficient for you to select, as we have seen before, the text in the columns you want to align and locate the icon dedicated to managing text alignments in the Home ribbon . You can easily find it in the third section of the ribbon, in the fifth position, represented by 5 parallel horizontal lines flanked by a down arrow. Click on it to open the Alignment drop-down menu and to view the possible options.
Finally align the two columns by clicking, according to the result you want to obtain, on Align left , Align center , Align right or Justify .
How to align two columns in Word mobile for smartphones and tablets
Even using the Word mobile app you can align the two columns you created and the text you went to write within them.
Open the document in which you have set the text arrangement in two columns and press the icon dedicated to the Edit function , represented by a pencil. At this point, hold down the screen with your finger and select the content of the document by moving the appropriate cursors or pressing the Select all item .
Once you have selected the text in the columns you want to align, press the button depicting the small triangular arrow located in the lower bar of the application options (on smartphones, on tablets you will find everything in the top menu) and, remaining in the Home section , scroll down until you reach the area where there are the buttons and icons dedicated to alignment, which you can find after the Numbered Lists button and before the Paragraph button .
Again, as you can see, you have the four different possibilities described above: Align Left , Align Center , Align Right and Justify . Tap on the corresponding icons to align the two columns according to your needs, automatically and immediately.
How to merge two columns in Word
Another useful function is to join the different sections previously created. So let ‘s see how to join two columns in Word , always analyzing the procedure to follow for the different versions of Word. Nothing complicated! It is in fact the reverse path compared to what has already been seen to create the two columns.
How to merge two columns in Word for PC / Mac
To merge two columns in Word for PC or for Mac , open the document containing a text divided into two distinct columns. Then click on the Layout item in the upper options bar, then click on Columns .
Once the column management drop-down on the Word page has opened, click on One to ensure that the two columns in place automatically merge into a single column, distributing the text uniformly and in an orderly and sequential manner. they content.
How to merge two columns in Word Online
To merge two columns in Word Online you have to follow the steps that lead you to be redirected to the desktop version of the program, with which you can actually change the page layout settings.
How to merge two columns in Word mobile for smartphones and tablets
To merge two columns on Word mobile , select the document divided into two columns that you want to merge in the app and press the icon depicting the pencil , to edit the document.
So go to Home and press Layout . At this point select the Columns item and finally presses on One to join the two columns and to make sure that the text divided into these goes to occupy the width of the entire page of the documen
