There are several ways one can use to reduce the size of a Word document file.
While some are easy to follow, others involve going through a lot of steps to get the work done.
However, one solution cannot work for all. Every Word document file has a reason for its largeness. The more knowledge you have about the file size, the easier you can make it smaller. Without further ado, below are the various ways you can get this task done.
Option 1: Copy the Content into a new Word document to make it smaller
To make a Word document smaller:
- Open the Word document you want to make smaller.
- Press Ctrl+A to select all content in the document.
- Press Ctrl+C to copy all selected content.
- Press Ctrl+N to create a new document.
- Press Ctrl+V to paste the copied content into the new document
- Save the new document.
How it works?
While you create and edit a document, it accumulates some auto-save information somewhere in the document. So by transferring the original file content into a new document file, you get rid of the auto-save data in the old document hence reducing the file size.
Option 2: Convert your document to DOCX format
If you are still using the .doc file format, you can reduce the file size by simply converting your document to a .docx format. The .docx format is a new file type introduced in Office 2007 which acts as a zip file by compressing the content of the document. You can use this option to reduce the file size of other Office applications such as Excel or PowerPoint.
To convert your doc file to Docx file: Press F12 to display the Save as dialog.
In the File name box, add the .docx file format to the name of your document.
Click Save to save the document.
NOTE: This method works if you are using a .doc file format. Thus, it may not work for some. But you’ll never know if you don’t try.
Option 3: Insert small-sized pictures. And don’t copy and paste.
If your document contains lots of pictures, it could be the reason behind your file size.
Thus, the best thing to do is to reduce the file size of the pictures before inserting them into your document. This will, in turn, make a large Word document smaller.
Also, don’t copy and paste the pictures into your document. Instead, use the Insert>Pictures option.
To reduce the file size of your pictures, use a photo editing software or a google search for “Resize images online” will do the job.
Option 4: Compress already inserted images in your document.
If you already inserted your images into your Word document, below are steps to compress them so that they become smaller.
Click F12 to display the Save as dialog box.
At the bottom of the dialog, click on Tools>Compress Pictures
The Compress Pictures… dialog appears. Under the resolution option, select the best option for you and click on OK.
If you are really desperate to reduce your Word document file size and are willing to compromise the quality of your pictures, select the E-mail option to make your Word document smaller.
These are the ways you may make your Word document smaller.