Word documents can become cluttered with both useless metadata and grammatical issues. This guide will show you how to remove both, finishing with a cleanly written and not-so-clunky document. You might even save a few kilobytes in the process!
In this article: Removing Unused Styles | Removing Extra Spaces | Removing Extra Lines | Document Inspector: Hidden Information | Reducing File Sizes The Reducing File Sizes section is broken down into: Compressed Pictures | Inserting vs. Copy / Paste | Image File Sizes | Using Styles | Creating Copies | Tracking Changes | Auto Recover Settings | Embedded Objects | Embedded Fonts | Rich Text Format Files
Removing Unused Styles
When creating a document from scratch, it is likely you are creating paragraph and character styles as you go. The only added styles would be what Word embeds as a default. But, what if you have imported the document from elsewhere? Or perhaps you've copy/pasted from so many different sources, your styles panel now looks like the Word equivalent to Frankenstein's Monster? Below are the following steps to cleaning up paragraph and character Styles.
Firstly, we want to turn on the Keep Track of Formatting option. Head to the following and make sure it is selected: File > Options > Advanced > Keep Track of Formatting.
In the Styles Panel (reached by selecting SHIFT + CTRL + ALT + S or selecting the pop-out button from the Styles section of the Home ribbon), select Options... to show the Style Pane Options popup.
In the Select Styles to Show drop-down list, select In Use. Press OK, and the pane will now only show the styles you are using in the document.
Look for erroneous styles... anything that doesn't belong. By hovering your mouse over the style that doesn't belong, a downward arrow will appear. Select it, and select Select All x Instance(s). This will search the entire document for every instance of the incorrect style, and highlight them.
With these paragraphs or characters selected, choose a different style. This will change all instances of the incorrect style to the one you chose. The style will remain in the Styles panel; however, it will not appear while In Use is selected as a viewing option.
Once you have changed all erroneous styles, applying the correct style, it is time to delete the unused styles. Return to Styles > Options... > Select Style to Show, and select In Current Document. This will show the added styles the document contains, including the ones that aren't in use.
Hover over the unused style you wish to delete, and use the downward arrow to access the set of options. Select Delete StyleName... (StyleName being the name of the style). You will be asked if you wish to delete the style. Select Yes if you wish to go through with the task. Repeat this until all unnecessary styles are gone.
Deleting a dozen styles may not be too time consuming, but if there are hundreds of styles that need removing, take a look at the next section below to see how many of them can be deleted at the same time using a workaround. That, or you can search for or create a macro to do this for you. A macro acts like a miniature program, and can be seen as a series of specific tasks you ask the system to make. There may be one out there that automates the process you are looking for.
Deleting Multiple Styles at Once
Sometimes you need to remove a lot of styles at once -- too many to remove manually. This is how it can be done: In the Styles panel select Manage Styles. The button looks like an A with a checkmark under it.
Select the Import/Export... button on the bottom left of the box. Then select the styles you wish to delete, and select the Delete button. After you Close this panel you're all done!
Removing Extra Spaces (while recording a macro)
Speaking of macros (see the last paragraph above, in the Removing Unused Styles section of this guide), we are going to create one while cleaning removing any extra spaces that exist in the document.
There was a time when double spaces after a period was preferred over one space, but that is no longer the standard. It can also create clunky looking lines in a paragraph that are sometimes very noticeable. The next steps will show how to remove these extra spaces, while creating a macros that will allow us to do it for other documents with the click of a button.
In the Developer ribbon (if Developer isn't an option, select File > Options > Customize Ribbon and make sure Developer is selected) select Record Macro. Give the Macro a name and assign it to Button. The name cannot have spaces in it, but it can have underscores. This will tell the system you want to begin recording the next steps you perform.
Select the macro on the left side panel, and select Add >> to add it to the right side panel. This will add the button to your Quick Access Toolbar. Select OK.
Alternatively, you can add a keyboard shortcut instead of creating a button. Follow the steps above, but after naming your macro, select the Keyboard button. In the Press New Shortcut Key text box, enter a custom shortcut for this macro, like CTRL + SHIFT + "Num +" (for the Plus sign on the number pad). Press and hold CTRL and SHIFT, press the + sign on the numeric keypad, then release all three keys simultaneously. Select the Assign button, then select Close.
Press CTRL+H to access the Find and Replace dialog box. When the box appears, type in the following in the Find What: and Replace With: field boxes.
Find What: ( ){2,}
Replace With: 1
Be sure there's a space between the two (parentheses) in the Find What box. Select the More... button if it is there (otherwise it will be a <<Less button), and select the Use Wildcards checkbox.
Select Replace All. Close the dialog box, and then stop recording the macro by selecting Stop Macro in the Develop ribbon.
Removing Extra Lines (while recording a macro)
We've now removed extra spaces. It's time to remove extra, unnecessary lines.
In the Developer tab, Select Record Macro, then enter a macro name: Clean_Up_3. Select the Keyboard button. In the text box under Press New Shortcut Key, enter a custom shortcut for this macro: CTRL + SHIFT + Num - (press and hold CTRL and SHIFT, then press the minus sign on the numeric keypad, then release all three keys simultaneously). Select the Assign button, then select Close. Alternatively, use the Button functionality as described above to create a macros button.
Next, press CTRL+H to access the Find and Replace dialog box. When the box appears, click the More... button to display additional search options and special features.
Place your cursor in the Find what: field box, then select the Special button. Select Paragraph Mark, then select it again, resulting in two paragraph marks in the field box.
Place your cursor in the Replace With: text box, then select the Special button. Select Paragraph Mark just once. Note: You can also enter the paragraph mark yourself as the code ^p (using the caret symbol above the number 6 on a standard USA/CAN keyboard).
Select the Replace All button, and then select OK in the popup box. While the macro is still recording you can repeat the process a few times. It should be enough to remove all the unnecessary line spaces.
Select the Stop Macro button in the Developer ribbon to end save the macro.
Document Inspector: Hidden Information
A Word document may contain hidden, sensitive data and information you may want to remove.
To begin, select File > Info > Check for Issues > Inspect Document.
A Document Inspector popup will appear. Here you can select what you wish the program to inspect, including Document Properties and Personal Information, which includes hidden metadata. Select Inspect.
The inspector will run, and will provide results, allowing you the option to remove all issues individually.
Reducing File Sizes
Word documents can get large... really large. Sometimes they become difficult to work with on the cloud with multiple users at once. Sometimes they go above the regular email sending limit. The following are some ways in which you can reduce their file sizes.
Compressing Pictures
Ideally, if you use small sizes when you insert pictures, this will reduce the size of your Word documents. However, you can compress one or all pictures already in a Word file. You may wish to try this with one picture at a time to be sure you are satisfied with the result after compression. To compress a picture or pictures:
1. Select a picture.
2. Select the Picture Tools Format or Picture Format tab in the ribbon that appears after the picture is selected.
3. Select Compress Pictures in the Adjust group. A dialog box appears.
4. Select Apply to Selected Pictures unless you wish to apply to all.
5. Select Delete Cropped Areas of Pictures if cropping was applied. Normally, Word saves the cropped area, but doesn't show it. This will remove those areas completely.
6. Be sure Compress Picture is selected.
7. Choose a document resolution that works for you. If you aren't printing this document you can reduce it to 96dpi by selecting Web/Screen. In older versions of Word, you might receive a different dialog box with different dpi/ppi levels. Select what you feel is best.
8. Select OK. If you get a warning, select Apply.
Insert Pictures Instead of Using the Copy/Paste Method
This one's pretty straight-forward. It is better to insert pictures using the Insert tab in the ribbon, rather than copying and pasting from screenshots or from another file. By copying and pasting, the image can lose compression, change the file type, or it can also bring in other data that might increase file size (such as styles and additional metadata). To insert a picture in Microsoft Word:
1. Select Pictures in the Insert ribbon. A dialog box will appear.
2. Navigate to the location of the picture you want to insert.
3. select the picture, and select Insert (or double-click the picture).
You can also link a picture file by selecting the arrow beside the Insert button in the Insert Picture dialog box, and then choosing Link to File. If you choose to go this route, the picture will not actually be contained within the Word file. The plus side is that it will reduce the file size of the document. The negative is that the picture will not be included if you decide to, say, email the document to someone who doesn't have direct access to the drive your picture is located in.
Use Smaller Image Files
It is best to insert pictures in smaller sizes to reduce the size of your Word files. If you are, say, inserting pictures from a phone taken at a high resolution, this will result in larger documents. Save your images at lower resolutions before adding them to your document to reduce its file size. You can reduce it by a substantial amount before it starts to look blurry... unless you plan to enlarge your document to fit a billboard.
3D models in Word 365 can bloat your document greatly, and you can't compress them like other images. If you are looking for smaller file sizes, avoid using the 3D models.
If you plan to use stock images, choose images at the lowest resolution you feel will work for your document. You can edit the image in a program like Photoshop, and save it at a lower resolution.
Use Styles Instead of Manually Formatting Text
The general rule is, the more manual or direct formatting you use in Word, the larger the document will be. Each time you manually change a paragraph or character, code is added in the background to reflect the changes, which can lead to large document sizes very quickly. Using styles as much as possible reduces the file size.
So, rather than applying 16 point, italic, and purple properties to a heading, consider using a style that contains these properties already. In the backend, the document will not need to add code each time. To apply a style, see this guide all about Styles in Word.
"Save As" & Copy a Large Document
It isn't a bad idea to create a copy of large documents once in a while using the Save As feature. It will remove some of the version history and editing data during the process, which can make the document smaller.
To save a copy of a Word file:
1. Select the File ribbon.
2. Select Save As. you may need to select Options or More Options. A dialog box will appear.
3. Navigate to where you wish to save the file and rename it (we recommend appending it with a version number).
4. Select Save.
Saving copies often can help with versioning, and might save you from corrupt files.
Completing Track Changes
To save on precious bytes, head to the Review ribbon and accept or reject any tracked changes that are on, then turn off tracked changes. Extensive use of comments and tracked changes can slow down a large document and increase its file size. Consider using this method in tandem with the Save As feature so you can keep your tracking in one document, and having another that has a smaller file size.
Changing Your Auto Recover Settings
You can turn off the Auto Recovery tool entirely, though this is not recommended. If the program crashes, you could lose your file. You can also change the time when Word creates an auto recovery file. Again, not recommended, but it will reduce the file size, and your system won't slow down as often while it is trying to create a file. To change the Auto Recovery settings so Word does not create a recovery file as often:
1. Select the File Ribbon.
2. Select Options > Save > Save Documents.
3. Change the Minutes field in Save AutoRecover Information Every to an extended time.
4. Select OK.
Note: if AutoRecover is turned on, and you leave your Word file open when you leave your computer, the file continues to increase in size. this is because Word continually creates new versions of the file. Consider closing the file when you’re not working on it.
Avoid Embedded Objects, Or Convert Them
Embedding other files, like an Excel spreadsheet, will increase your document's file size. If you can, convert objects like tables to pictures to reduce the size of the overall file.
To convert an embedded object to a picture, select it and then press CTRL + SHIFT + F9 (you can CTRL+A and Select All to convert all embedded items at once). Some keyboards require pressing the FN (function) key to activate F9.
Avoid Embedding Fonts
You can embed a font if you plan to open it on a system or device that might not have that font; however it will cause the file's size to increase. Furthermore, embedded fonts typically cause more issues with the document than if the font was installed on the device reading the document.
To turn off font embedding:
1. Select File > Options, and in the Save section, uncheck the Embed Fonts in the File option.
2. Press OK.
Save As RTF Format
Okay, we're getting into the realm of desperation here. Yes, you can save your Word file as an RTP (Rich Text Format) file instead of the native .docx version, and it will be a smaller file. You will, however, be losing functionality, and there will be other limitations when using and viewing this document.
Here are some pointers when comparing the two types of documents:
1. Word files have more formatting options than Rich Text Format files. If you convert to an RTF you may lose some formatting.
2. Word documents tend to be larger files than RTFs.
3. There are far more text editors and word processors that can open RTFs than ones that can open Word documents, but the number is increasing. Open Office, Google Docs, and Apple's Pages can import / export Word files, as well as many other programs. Still, some programs and online tools won't accept .docx files. Given how popular Word is these days, this is not so much a problem anymore.
4. Microsoft is still developing and improving their Word files, while Rich Text is no longer being developed -- it is what it is, and will not change with the times.
To Save As an RTF file, see the section above on "Save As" & Copy a Large Document, except change the file type to .rtf before saving.
Wrapping Up
Well there you have it! A nice list for reducing those dreaded mega-mega-megabyte files to mere kilomonsters. I'm sure there are other little tips and tricks out there (I once uploaded a huge Word document to Google Docs, and then resaved it as a .docx Word file, and it reduced the size by half), and I'd like to hear them. Comment and post below what tricks you learned on how to reduce file sizes! Until then...
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