Hello, my name is Erin.
This tutorial shows how to change the page background color in Word for Mac.
We will also look at how to print Word documents with their background color.
Plus, the Pro Tip at the end shows a workaround to change the background color on specific pages in your Word document.
I’ll be using Word for Microsoft 365 for Mac.
These steps also apply to the standalone versions of the software back to Word 2016 for Mac.
If you’re on a PC, please see this tutorial’s companion video titled
“How to Change the Page Background Color in Microsoft Word,” which is linked below.
The steps we’re going to go through in this section
will change the page background color for your entire document.
If you want to learn a workaround to change the page background color for a specific page,
remember to stay tuned for the Pro Tip at the end of this tutorial.
To begin, select the Design tab in the ribbon.
Next, select the Page Color button.
And then choose a color from the drop-down menu.
You can also select More Colors and then choose advanced color options from the Colors dialog box.
Today I’m going to choose one of the standard theme colors.
After making your choice, your page background color should change immediately.
If you want to remove the page background color,
reselect the Page Color button,
and then select No Color from the drop-down menu.
By default, your Word for Mac options are usually set to print documents without page background colors
because they require a lot of printer ink.
However, you can print the page background colors if you want to.
You can also use these steps if you want to prevent your Word document from printing page background colors.
It’s important to note that when you print page background colors,
there will usually be a white margin around the whole page because most printers can’t print from edge to edge.
To begin, select the Word menu at the top of the screen.
Followed by Preferences from the drop-down menu.
When the Word Preferences dialog box appears, select the Print button.
And then select Print background colors and images.
Alternatively, you can uncheck this option if you don’t want background colors to print.
The “images” mentioned in the option refer to images used as background colors,
not images inserted into your text.
When you’re finished, select the Close button.
And then continue to print your document as you normally would.
Word for Mac doesn’t currently provide a way to change the page background color on specific pages.
However, we can use the rectangle shape as a quick workaround.
Notes that the shapes used in this workaround don’t become part of the page background.
Therefore, they will print as normal images inserted into your text.
So, please keep that in mind if you plan to print your document.
To begin, reduce the zoom on your screen so that you can see the whole page.
Then, select the Insert tab in the ribbon.
Next, select the Shapes button.
And then select the rectangle shape from the drop-down menu.
Now, drag a rectangle over the entire page.
The rectangle will appear translucent blue when dragged.
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Once the rectangle is over your page, select the Shape Fill menu arrow.
And then select a color from the drop-down menu.
Alternatively, you can select More Fill Colors, Picture, Gradient, or Texture for additional options.
Next, control-click or right-click the rectangle,
and then select the Send to Back menu arrow.
Followed by Send Behind Text from the submenu.
Your text should now be visible, and you can return the zoom to a normal level.
If you want to delete the rectangle background color later on,
select it by clicking in the margin area,
and then press the Delete key on your keyboard.
And as always, remember to save your file to save your changes.
I have a growing collection of tutorials about Word for Mac including
“How to Create Custom List Numbers in Word for Mac.”
And, “How to Change Your Name for Track Changes in Word for Mac.”
Please see the complete list in the playlist titled “How to Use Word for Mac” which is linked in the description box below.
All the steps we just performed are listed with images on erinwrightwriting.com,
along with all my other writing-related software tutorials to help you succeed at work and in the classroom.
Feel free to leave me a comment if there’s a specific topic
that you would like me to talk about in the future.
And please subscribe to my channel so you don’t miss upcoming tutorials.
And give this video a thumbs-up if you found it helpful.
Thank you so much for watching!
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