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How to Hide or Remove Table Gridlines in Word on Mac
Question details
The user wants to know how to delete or hide the gridlines that appear around tables in Microsoft Word on a Mac.
- Product
- Microsoft Word
- Device & OS
- Mac
- Scenario
- Adjusting table visibility and cell boundaries for document editing or printing without showing unwanted lines.
- Observed behavior
- Lines appear around the table cells on the screen. Users are confused about whether these lines will print and how to remove them from the screen or the printed document.
Determine whether the lines you are seeing are display-only gridlines (which help with editing but do not print) or actual table borders (which will appear on printed documents).
Hide Display-Only Table Gridlines
Use this method to turn off the visual guides that appear around table cells on your screen when borders are disabled.
Table gridlines in Word are meant to be visual aids. They cannot be permanently 'deleted' because they are built-in guides, but they can be easily hidden from your view.
Click anywhere inside the table, then click the table move handle (the small square with a cross inside) that appears at the top-left corner of the table.
Navigate to the 'Layout' tab that appears on the Word ribbon under 'Table Tools'.
Click the 'View Gridlines' button on the left side of the ribbon. This will hide the dotted visual guidelines from your screen.
Remove Printable Table Borders
If the lines around your table are solid and appear when you print the document, they are borders. You need to remove them using the border formatting options.
Easily Format Table Gridlines and Borders in WPS Office
WPS Office provides a lightweight, highly compatible alternative for Mac users. You can effortlessly manage table borders, toggle gridlines, and format documents exactly as you would in Microsoft Word, all within an intuitive and free software suite.
- 1. Open your Document: Launch WPS Writer on your Mac and open your Word document.
- 2. Select the Table: Click the cross icon at the top left of the table to highlight all cells.
- 3. Adjust Borders: Navigate to the Table Tools tab and use the Borders drop-down menu to select 'No Border'.
- 4. Toggle Gridlines: In the same tab, simply click 'Hide Gridlines' to remove the visual cell boundaries from your editing screen.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do I still see lines after selecting 'No Border' in Word?
Those are display-only table gridlines designed to help you see cell boundaries while editing without borders. They will not print. You can hide them by going to the Table Layout tab and deselecting 'View Gridlines'.
Will table gridlines show up when I save the document as a PDF?
No, display gridlines do not appear in printed documents or exported PDF files. Only actual table borders applied via the Borders and Shading menu will be visible in the final PDF.
Does hiding gridlines affect all tables in my document?
Yes, viewing or hiding gridlines is a global view setting in Word. Toggling it off will hide the gridlines for all tables within that document that do not have active borders.
How do I know if my table has borders or just gridlines?
The easiest way to check is by going to File > Print to look at the Print Preview. If the lines appear in the preview, they are printable borders. If they do not appear, they are display-only gridlines.
