To add a table of contents (TOC) in Microsoft Word, follow these steps:

1. Prepare Your Document with Headings

• Apply heading styles to the sections you want to include in the TOC. Highlight the section title, then go to Home > Styles and select Heading 1 for main sections, Heading 2 for subsections, and so on. This tells Word what to include in the TOC

2. Insert the Table of Contents

• Place your cursor where you want the TOC to appear, typically at the beginning of the document.
• Go to the References tab.
• Click Table of Contents.
• Choose an automatic style from the list (e.g., Automatic Table 1 or 2). This creates a TOC based on your heading styles

3. Update the Table of Contents

• If you make changes to your document (add, remove, or rename headings), right-click the TOC and select Update Field.
• Choose to update either the page numbers only or the entire table

Optional: Customize Your Table of Contents

• You can customize the TOC by selecting Custom Table of Contents under the Table of Contents menu.
• Options include changing the number of heading levels shown, the tab leader style (dots or dashes), font, and whether to use hyperlinks for navigation

Tips for Navigation

• In the TOC, hold Ctrl (or Command on Mac) and click a page number to jump to that section.
• Use the Navigation Pane (View > Navigation Pane) to browse headings in your document quickly

This method works in recent versions of Word including Word 2016, Word 2019, Word 2021, Word 2024, and Word for Microsoft 365

Summary

• Use heading styles to mark your sections.
• Insert TOC via References > Table of Contents > choose automatic style.
• Update TOC as needed.
• Customize TOC appearance if desired.
• Use Ctrl+click on TOC entries for quick navigation.

This creates a professional, easy-to-navigate document structure automatically