Updating a Table of Contents

When you create a TOC, Word scans the entire document to determine which entries should be included in the table and which page numbers should be used for each entry. However, after you create the TOC, none of the changes you make to the document are reflected in the TOC. So, if you create a TOC before you're done with the document, the TOC quickly becomes out of date.

To rebuild a TOC after you make changes, follow these steps:

1. Select the table and click the Update Table button in the Table of Contents group on the References tab.
   The Update Table of Contents dialog box.
2. Choose whether to rebuild the entire table or update only the page numbers.
3. Click OK to update the table.

Here are a few other ways to update a table of contents:

• Click anywhere in the table and press F9.
• Right-click the table and choose Update Field from the shortcut menu.
• Press Ctrl+A to select the entire document and then press F9. Pressing this key updates all tables of contents in the document, in case you have more than one.

Don't forget to save your file after you update the tables.

Adding Text

Sometimes you want a table of contents to include a bit of arbitrary text that hasn't been formatted with a heading style. For example, you might want to add a pointer in the TOC to an important sidebar with a title that isn't styled as a heading. To do so, just highlight the text you want to include in the table and click the Add Text button in the Table of Contents group on the References tab. A menu appears that allows you to select the level where you want the text to appear in the table.

After you add the text, you need to update the table before the text will appear in the table. For more information, see the preceding section, "Updating a Table of Contents."