ARCHIVED: In Microsoft Word, how do I change the default font?
The default font in Microsoft Word 2010 and 2007 is 11 point Calibri. The default font in earlier versions is 12 point Times New Roman. To change the default font size and type, follow the appropriate instructions below.
On this page:
Microsoft Word 2010 and 2007
Setting the default within Word
- Launch Word. To open the
Font
dialog box, either click the button in the lower right corner of the "Font" group or pressCtrl-d
. - Choose the font type and size that you want to be the default every time you open Word.
- In the bottom left corner of the
Font
window, click . - When prompted to confirm, click .
Modifying the template file
The other way to set the default font is to modify the global
template file normal.dotm
(in most cases) and/or
normal.dotx
(in a minority of cases). There are two
methods:
From within Word 2010 or 2007:
- In the Ribbon, from the tab, right-click one of the templates over "Styles".
- Click .
- Edit your style. When you are finished, click .
From the Start menu:
- Click
Note: If this doesn't match what you see, refer to ARCHIVED: Get around in Windows.
and either click the Search field, or select
or . Then, click or .
- Search for the file
normal.dot
. This will return both thenormal.dotm
and, if you have it, thenormal.dotx
template files. - Select one of the files, and then double-click the filename to open it.
- After the file is open, you can change the font size and type, and
then save this file. You can then repeat this for the other template
file, assuming you have it installed (you may not have the
normal.dotx
template file). - After saving this file, close Word, and then open it again.
Earlier versions of Microsoft Word
Setting the default within Word
- Launch Word, click , and then click .
- Choose the font type and size that you want to be the default every time you open Word.
- In the bottom left corner of the
Font
window, click . - When prompted to confirm, click .
Modifying the template file
The other way to set the default font is to modify the global
template file normal.dot
:
- Click
Note: If this doesn't match what you see, refer to ARCHIVED: Get around in Windows.
and either click the Search field, or select
or . Then, click or .
- Search for the file
normal.dot
. - When the file is located, double-click the filename to open it.
- After the file is open, you can change the font size and type, and then save this file.
- After saving this file, close Word, and then open it again.
This is document ahtk in the Knowledge Base.
Last modified on 2018-01-18 12:45:05.