How to Add a Text Box in Word: Windows, Mac and Web (2026)

A text box is the little trick that lets you drop a block of words anywhere on a Word page: a pull quote on a client handout, a contact panel on a one-page offer, a label sitting over a picture. Without one, Word keeps shoving your text into the normal flow of the page, and anything you try to place by hand ends up wandering.

I'm following Microsoft's own support page here, so the button names match what you'll see on screen. Where that page says nothing, I've said so rather than guess, because Word's menus shift between versions.

Putting a text box into a Word document on Windows

On a Windows computer, Microsoft's steps give you a choice between a ready-made box and one you draw yourself:

1. Open your document and click roughly where you want the box to appear.
2. Go to the Insert tab and select Text Box.
3. Pick a pre-formatted option from the Built-in section, choose More Text Boxes from Office.com, or select Draw Text Box.
4. If you chose Draw Text Box, click in the document and drag until the box is the size you want.
5. Click inside the box and type or paste your text.

Prefer the keyboard? Microsoft lists Alt, then N, then X to open the text box menu. Use the arrow keys to choose a box, press Enter, type your text and press Esc to get back to the document body.

Putting a text box into Word on a Mac

Word for Mac keeps the same Insert tab but the menu offers two drawing choices. Go to Insert, select Text Box, then pick Draw Text Box for horizontal text or Vertical Text Box for text that runs down the page. Click in the document, drag to the size you want, then click inside the box and type or paste.

Handy if you're making a spine label or a narrow sidebar: the vertical option saves you from rotating anything later.

Inserting a text box in Word for the web

The browser version works differently, and Microsoft's page is upfront about that. Instead of a Text Box button on the Insert tab, you go through a drawing canvas:

1. Select Insert, then choose Drawing in the Illustrations group.
2. In the drawing window, select Text Box and drag with your cursor to make the box.
3. Type your text and apply any styling.
4. Select Save and Close to put the finished box onto the page.

To change it later, double-click the box. That opens the Drawing pane, which Microsoft labels as a preview, where the Text tab handles the words and the Shape tab handles the box itself. Finish with Save and Close again. If you need links between boxes or fine control, Microsoft's page doesn't cover those for the web, so use the desktop app for that job.

Moving, copying and deleting a Word text box

Most of the frustration with text boxes comes from clicking the inside when you meant the edge. Microsoft's guidance is consistent on this:

• Move it: click the box and, when the pointer becomes a four-headed arrow, drag it to its new spot.
• Copy it: select the border of the box (not the inside), press Ctrl + C, click where you want the copy and press Ctrl + V. On a Mac, Control-click the border and choose Copy, or use Command + C.
• Delete it: select the border and press Delete. If your pointer is inside the box when you press Delete, Word removes the text only and leaves an empty box behind.

That last one explains the most common complaint I hear: 'I've deleted the words but the box is still there.' Click the border, then press Delete again.

Formatting the words and the shape of a Word text box

There are two separate things to style. For the text, select it and use the Font group on the Home tab. For the box itself, select it and open the Shape Format tab that appears. That's where Microsoft says you'll find the shape options, and on a Mac it includes text direction and vertical alignment.

One page Microsoft's help doesn't spell out is resizing. It tells you to draw the box at the size you want, but gives no separate resizing steps, so if the size is wrong and the menus on your version don't make the fix obvious, deleting the border and drawing it again is a perfectly sensible route.

Linking one Word text box to another

Say you're laying out a short newsletter and a story needs to run from one column into the next. Select the first box, then on the Shape Format tab choose Create Link in the Text group. Text then flows from one linked box into the next. On Mac, Microsoft adds a condition: you can only link to an empty text box, so set up the second one before you connect them.

Using a Word text box on small business documents

A few places where a text box earns its keep in everyday work:

• A highlighted quote from a happy client on a one-page proposal.
• A contact panel in the corner of an information sheet, so it never jumps when you edit the paragraphs around it.
• A label over a photo in a handout or a training pack.
• A short checklist set apart from the main text.

If your team also drafts in the browser with Google, my guide to add a text box in Google Docs covers the equivalent there. And once the files start piling up, it's worth reading about document management software for small businesses so nobody is hunting through folders for the latest version.

If you can't find the Word text box option

1. Check you're on the Insert tab, not Home or Layout.
2. If you're in the browser, remember there's no direct Text Box button: go through Drawing in the Illustrations group.
3. If you're in a very old copy of Word, menus vary by version, so search the ribbon box for 'text box'.
4. Make sure your document isn't open in a locked reading view; switch to editing mode first.
5. Still stuck? Microsoft's own support site is the place to check against your exact version.

Frequently asked questions

How do I add a text box in Word?

Go to Insert, select Text Box, then choose a built-in design or Draw Text Box and drag to the size you want. Click inside the box to type. In Word for the web, use Insert, then Drawing, then Text Box.

How do I delete a text box in Word?

Select the border of the box and press Delete. If your pointer is inside the box, Delete only removes the text.

Can I add a text box in Word for the web?

Yes, through the drawing canvas. Choose Insert, then Drawing, select Text Box, type your text and select Save and Close. Microsoft labels the Drawing pane a preview.

How do I move a text box in Word?

Click the box and drag it when the pointer turns into a four-headed arrow.

Can text flow from one text box into another?

On the desktop app, yes. Select a box and choose Create Link on the Shape Format tab. On a Mac you can only link to an empty text box.