This tutorial shows how to create custom bullets in Microsoft Word.
[Typewriter sounds]
Hello, my name is Erin.
I’m a technical writer and editor who shares step-by-step software tutorials and writing tips for the real world
on this channel and on my blog at erinwrightwriting.com.
Today, we’re going to create custom bullets in Word using built-in font symbols and using your own images.
At the end, we will also remove custom bullets from the Bullets Library.
I will be using Word for Microsoft 365.
These steps will be similar for Word 2019, Word 2016, Word 2013, and Word 2010.
However, your interface may look slightly different in those older versions of the software.
If you would like to learn more about using bullets in Word, please see my other tutorial called
“How to Create Bulleted Lists in Microsoft Word,” which is linked in the description box below.
Before we create our custom bullets using symbols, please note that symbols are part of font files,
so the symbols available to you will depend on the fonts installed on your computer.
To begin, select the Home tab in the ribbon.
Then, select the Bullets menu arrow in the Paragraph group.
Followed by Define New Bullet from the drop-down menu.
Now, select the Symbol button in the Define New Bullet dialog box.
And then select the font containing the symbol you want to use from the Font menu in the Symbol dialog box.
For this example, I’ll choose Webdings.
Other good choices that may be available on your computer include the Wingdings, Wingdings 2, Wingdings 3, and Symbols fonts.
Next, choose the character or symbol you want from the menu.
And then select the OK button to close the Symbol dialog box.
If you want to change the color or size of your bullets, select the Font button in the Define New Bullet dialog box.
And then choose a new color
and/or size from the Font dialog box.
When you’re finished, select the OK button to close the Font dialog box.
And then select the OK button to close the Define New Bullet dialog box.
The first custom bullet will appear in your document.
Continue to create your bulleted list as you normally would.
You can use your own images to create custom bullets in Word.
However, simpler images work better than complex images because complex images may become unrecognizable
when they are scaled down to become bullets.
For example, this is Peabody.
Peabody is the greatest dog in the world, but his picture is too complex to make a good bullet in Word.
To begin creating your custom bullet with an image, select the Home tab in the ribbon.
And once again select the Bullets menu arrow in the Paragraph group.
Followed by Define New Bullet from the drop-down menu.
Next, select the Picture button in the Define New Bullet dialog box.
When the Insert Picture dialog box appears, select From a File if your image is stored on your computer.
Alternatively, you can choose Bing Image Search if you want to search for an image online
or OneDrive if your image is stored in the cloud.
If your image is stored on your computer, as mine is, navigate to and select the image in the second Insert Picture dialog box.
And then select the Insert button.
Finally, select the OK button to close the Define New Bullet dialog box.
The first custom image bullet will appear in your document.
Continue to create your bulleted list as you normally would.
After creating a custom bullet with a symbol or image, it will appear in your Bullet Library, accessible from the Bullets menu arrow.
You can remove unwanted bullets by right-clicking the bullet and then selecting Remove from the menu.
Next time you open Word, the bullet should also be removed from the Recently Used Bullets section.
As always, save your document to save your changes.
I have created many other videos about Microsoft Word, including “How to Create and Customize Charts in Microsoft Word”
and “How to Create and Update a Table of Contents in Microsoft Word.”
Please see the playlist titled “How to Use Microsoft Word,” which is linked below, for the complete list.
The companion blog post for this video listing all the steps we just performed appears on
erinwrightwriting.com, which is also linked below.
Feel free to leave me a comment if there’s a specific topic related to Microsoft Word, Adobe Acrobat, or Google Docs
that you would like me to talk about in the future.
And please subscribe to my channel so you don’t miss future tutorials and give this video a thumbs-up if you found it helpful.
Thank you so much for watching!
[Typewriter sounds]