Are the dots in your Word table of contents driving you crazy? Those dots, or “leaders,” are a default setting in Microsoft Word, but luckily, they can be changed or removed completely. Whether you want dashes, solid lines, or no leaders at all, you can customize it to fit your style. Let’s walk through how you can remove dots from a table of contents in Word, or change them to another format if you prefer.

If you want a visual step-by-step guide, you can check out this video, too:

Inserting a Table of Contents in Word

Before we dive into changing the dots, let’s start at the beginning by inserting a table of contents in Word. Don’t worry. It’s super simple.

  1. Open your Word document.
  2. Go to the References tab.
  3. Click on Table of Contents.
  4. From the dropdown, select Automatic Table 2 (or whichever preset works for you).

Now you should see the table of contents with headers on the left, those dotted leaders in-between, and the page numbers on the right.

Selecting the Entire Table of Contents

To customize the contents, you have to select the entire table first. This step can sometimes be tricky, but here’s a simple method that always works:

  1. Place your cursor in front of the first letter (usually something like “V” for “Table of Contents” by default).
  2. Scroll down to the last line of the table.
  3. Hold down Shift and click at the end to select everything.

Just like that, your entire table of contents will be selected and ready to customize.

RELATED TOPIC: How to Create a Table of Contents in Word

Changing the Dots to Dashes, Lines, or Nothing

Once your table of contents in Word is selected, you can remove those dots based on your preference. Word gives you a few options beyond dots – including dashes, solid lines, or removing leaders entirely. Here’s how you do it:

Step 1: Open the Custom Table of Contents Dialog Box

  1. With your table of contents selected, go back to References.
  2. Choose Table of Contents.
  3. Select Custom Table of Contents from the drop-down.

This will bring up a new menu with options.

Step 2: Choosing a Leader Style

Once you’re in the custom menu:

  1. Find the Tab leader section.
  2. You’ll see four options:
    • None (removes all leaders)
    • Dots (the default)
    • Dashes
    • Solid Line

Select whichever you prefer. For example, let’s say you want dashes:

  • Choose Dashes and click OK.
  • When Word asks if you want to replace the existing table of contents, say Yes.

Now, your table of contents will have dashes between the section titles and page numbers instead of dots.

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Step 3: Testing Other Options

You can always go back and try different options:

  1. If you want a solid line, follow the same steps as above, but this time select Solid Line.
  2. If you don’t want any leaders at all, select None.

Whenever you change the tab leader style, just remember to confirm the replacement by clicking Yes when Word prompts you.

What Happens if You Remove All Leaders?

You may be wondering: Will removing the dots cause the table of contents to stop working? Nope! Even if you remove the leaders entirely, your links still function the same. You can still Ctrl + Click on a header and navigate to the correct page.

So don’t worry about losing functionality — style customization doesn’t change how things work.

Setting Up for Future Tables of Contents

One thing to keep in mind: After you change the leaders, the style you select will become the default for the next table of contents you create in Word. If you decide later that you actually want the dots back, it’s easy to change it again using the same process.

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Final Thoughts

Customizing your table of contents in Word should only take a few minutes but can make all the difference in the overall look of your document. Whether you’re going for a more modern look with dashes or want no leaders for a cleaner style, it’s great to know that Word offers these options.

Don’t forget to take advantage of the control-click functionality still working even when you go leaderless. If this guide helped you, feel free to leave a comment or give the video linked above a thumbs up.

Ready to remove those dots from your table of contents? Give it a try today! And if you have any more questions on using Word, drop them below — happy to help.

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