Delete all styles in word

Please Note:
This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, Word in Microsoft 365, and 2021. If you are using an earlier version (Word 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Word, click here: Deleting Styles.

As you work with styles in Word, there may come a time when you want to delete a style you previously defined. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Display the Home tab of the ribbon and then click the small icon at the bottom-right of the Styles group. Word displays the Styles task pane.
2. In the list of styles shown in the pane, hover the mouse pointer over the style you want to delete. A down-arrow appears at the right side of the style name.
3. Click on the down-arrow that appeared in step 2. Word presents you with a list of actions you can take.
4. Choose either the Revert To Base Style option or the Delete option from the list of actions. You will be asked to confirm your action; click on Yes.
5. To delete other styles, repeat steps 2 through 4.
6. When you are done, close the Styles task pane.

You cannot delete styles that are predefined in Word. If you select these styles, the Delete option is not available in step 3.

Note that in step 4 there are two possible options you can use to actually delete the style. If the style is based on an underlying style, then you can only «revert» the style. This means that all the text that uses the style you are deleting is changed to the underlying style for the style you are deleting. If there is no underlying style, then you have the option to actually delete the style.

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Scenario

You receive a Word document that’s been through many hands, maybe even several different companies. It is littered with unused styles (typically with weird style names!) and you want to get rid of these styles from your full list of styles once and for all.

Solutions

There are several ways to get rid of unwanted styles. The method you choose depends on how many you need to get rid of, and the steps vary a little depending on whether you’re using Word 2003 or Word 2007.

Note: You cannot delete the default styles. Well, you can, but it requires some messing around. Check this Microsoft Knowledge Base article on how to do this in Word 2000 — it should apply to later versions too, though I haven’t tried any of their suggestions: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/193536.

Method 1: Delete a few styles manually

If you only have a few styles to delete, it’s probably just as quick to do them one at a time:

• Word 2003: Open the Styles and Formatting task pane (Format > Styles and Formatting), right-click on the style you want to delete, then select Delete.
• Word 2007: Show the Styles window (click the dialog launcher at the lower right of the Styles group on the Home tab). right-click on the style you want to delete, then select Delete <style name>.

Method 2: Delete many styles simultaneously

Word 2003:

1. Open the Styles and Formatting task pane (Format > Styles and Formatting) to display the styles (1).
2. Go to the Show drop-down list at the bottom of the task pane and select  the Custom option (2).
   
3. Click the Styles button (3) on the Format Settings window.
   
4. Click the Organizer button (4) on the Style window.
   
5. The Organizer window displays, listing the styles in your currently open document on the left. Select the styles you no longer want from the list on the left (use Ctrl+click or Shift+click to select multiples) [5], then click Delete (6).
   
6. Confirm the deletion when asked.

Word 2007:

1. Show the Styles window (click the dialog launcher at the lower right of the Styles group on the Home tab [1]). Note: I’ve highlighted the unwanted styles (2) in the screen shot below — you won’t see this highlighting in your list!
2. Click the Manage Styles icon (3) at the bottom of the Styles window.
   
3. Click Import/Export (4) on the Edit tab in the Manage Styles window (this is equivalent to the Organizer in Word 2003).
   
4. The Organizer window displays, listing the styles in your currently open document on the left. Select the styles you no longer want from the list on the left (use Ctrl+click or Shift+click to select multiples) [5], then click Delete (6).
   
5. Confirm the deletion when asked.

[Links last checked December 2009]

Time for a very quick article.

You know how to work with styles in Word.

You know how to save style sets, allowing you to call upon your favourite styles whenever you need them.

Now, learn how to delete them.

To delete a style in the current document

To delete an individual style in your current document, as long as it’s not one of the default styles (normal, headings 1–5 etc.), go to the Styles ribbon and click on that little down arrow in the bottom right-hand corner.

Click on Options and in the ‘Select styles to show’ dropdown menu choose ‘In current document’. The ‘Only in this document’ check box at the bottom should be automatically checked.

Click OK.

This will then show you all the styles in the document in the Styles box.

Say you want to delete the ‘Rubbish Style’ style … just hover over the style name and a dropdown menu arrow should appear. Click on the arrow and you’ll get some choices, including Delete.

A pop up box will then ask if you want to delete the style, and you just say yes.

Voila, it’s gone.

It’s no longer in your current document, and won’t annoy you any more.

But what if you really, really hate it and want it gone forever?

To permanently delete a style from a style set

If you’re using a style set, you can permanently delete an individual style in much the same way as deleting it from your document.

Load your style set.

Click on the little arrow in the bottom right-hand corner of the Styles ribbon section and select the Styles ‘in current document’ by clicking on Options (like you did before).

This time click on ‘New documents based on this template’ at the bottom of the box.

Then delete the style you don’t need any more.

When you come out of that style set, then decide to use it again, the style you deleted is still gone. It is no more. It is a deleted style.

You will notice though that you can’t delete the default Word styles. If you hover over the little box the delete choice is greyed out. It’s a good idea really, because you don’t want to get rid of the basic styles that you base all your other styles on.

If you want to revert to the default styles while working on a document, you should find a Default (black and white) style in your Style sets, or the default for the version of Word you are running.

Remember, if you save your styles using a style set name, you should be able to choose whichever style you have created or, by default, a new document will open up with a default style setting.

But what happens if you’ve managed to change the actual default style set?

You’ve probably managed it by changing, or modifying, the default style and clicking on the ‘New documents based on this template’. That changes all the documents from that moment on using the new default.

How on earth do you get your default styles back?

Well, the answer lies in the Normal.dot or Normal.dotm file. This is the default template style and it’s what you’ve managed to change.

Always be wary about renaming and deleting files, but in this case it seems that the answer is to delete (or rename) the Normal.dot file. If the file is deleted, on reboot, Word will create a new one as it realizes that it’s missing. BUT this will remove any other formatting choices that you have made, so this really is a last attempt to get back to normal.

There is a page on the Microsoft website that explains what you need to do.

As usual I hope this helps. I use Word 2007, but your version of Word should be similar.