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Merge Word Files Online

Combine multiple Word documents into one .docx file. Put them in order, keep formatting, images, tables and headers, then download the merged document. Everything happens in your browser.

Working with other formats? Combine plain text with the TXT Merger, notes and docs with the Markdown Merger, or web pages with the HTML Merger.

What Stays Intact

Formatting and styles

Fonts, headings, paragraph spacing and character styles from every document.

Images and charts

Pictures, charts, shapes and embedded objects are copied with the document.

Tables

Table layouts, borders, shading and table styles stay intact.

Lists and numbering

Bullets and numbered lists keep their format and restart per document.

Headers and footers

Keep the first document's, or each document's own with section breaks.

Footnotes and comments

Footnotes, endnotes and comments move with their text and are renumbered.

Links and bookmarks

Hyperlinks, cross-references and bookmarks keep working in the merged file.

Page layout

Section breaks keep each document's paper size, orientation and margins.

How It Works

1

Add documents

Drop two or more .docx files or browse. Each file is checked as it loads.

2

Set the order

Drag files into order, or sort them by name.

3

Choose settings

Pick page or section breaks and whose formatting to keep.

4

Download

Merge and download a single .docx file.

Page Break or Section Break?

OptionStarts a new pagePage size and orientationHeaders and footers
Page breakYesFirst document'sFirst document's
Section breakYesEach document keeps its ownEach document keeps its own
No breakNo, text continuesFirst document'sFirst document's

Use section breaks when you combine documents with different layouts, such as a portrait report and a landscape appendix, or chapters that each have their own running header. Use page breaks when every file should look like part of one uniform document.

FAQ

Merge Word Documents with Code

For repeat jobs or hundreds of files, a script can do the same work. The Python library docxcompose copies styles, numbering and images much like this tool does.

Pythonmerge_docx.py
# pip install python-docx docxcompose
from docx import Document
from docxcompose.composer import Composer

files = ["chapter-1.docx", "chapter-2.docx", "appendix.docx"]

master = Document(files[0])
composer = Composer(master)

for path in files[1:]:
    master.add_page_break()          # start each document on a new page
    composer.append(Document(path))  # copies styles, numbering and images

composer.save("merged.docx")
VBAMergeWordFiles.bas
' Word macro: insert every .docx in a folder into the open document.
' Alt+F11 > Insert > Module, paste, then run MergeWordFiles.
Sub MergeWordFiles()
    Dim folder As String, name As String
    folder = "C:\Documents\To merge\"
    name = Dir(folder & "*.docx")
    Do While name <> ""
        Selection.EndKey Unit:=wdStory
        Selection.InsertFile FileName:=folder & name
        Selection.InsertBreak Type:=wdPageBreak
        name = Dir()
    Loop
End Sub

The macro inserts files in the order Windows lists them, which isn't always alphabetical, and leaves a page break after the last file.

Complete Guide

How to merge Word files online

The quickest way to combine Word documents is the merger at the top of this page. It reads each .docx file in your browser, joins them in the order you set, and gives you one document to download. Nothing is installed and the files are not uploaded. To test the page breaks and style options before using your own documents, try it with a few sample Word files.

  1. Select Choose Word Files or drag two or more .docx files onto the upload area.
  2. Drag the documents into order, or sort them A to Z by file name.
  3. Choose what goes between documents: a page break, a section break, or nothing.
  4. Pick Keep source formatting or Use first document's styles.
  5. Select Merge, check the preview, and download the merged .docx.

How to merge Word documents in Microsoft Word

Word can insert one document into another with Text from File. It works well for a few files you open regularly:

  1. Open the document that should come first and click where the next document should go, usually at the end.
  2. On the Insert tab, open the Object menu and choose Text from File.
  3. Select one or more documents (hold Ctrl to pick several) and choose Insert.
  4. Add a page break between documents with Ctrl+Enter if you want each one on a new page.

When style names clash, Word keeps the open document's definitions, so inserted headings can change size or colour. Selecting several files at once also inserts them in the order the dialog lists them, which may not be the order you want. Inserting one file at a time avoids that.

Word for Mac

On a Mac, use Insert > Object > Text from File on the ribbon. Some versions show it in the menu bar as Insert > File. The online merger above also works in Safari, Chrome and Firefox on macOS.

How to combine documents in Google Docs

Google Docs has no merge command. You can copy the contents of each document and paste them into one, but complex formatting, comments and page setup often change in the process. A cleaner route is to open each Google Doc, choose File > Download > Microsoft Word (.docx), merge the files here, and upload the result back to Google Drive.

How to merge documents in LibreOffice Writer

In LibreOffice Writer, place the cursor where the next document should start and choose Insert > Text from File. Repeat for each file, then save as Word Document (.docx) if the result needs to open in Word.

Keeping formatting consistent

Every Word document carries its own set of styles: Normal, Heading 1, List Paragraph and so on. Two documents can use the same style name with different fonts or colours, and that is where most merging problems come from.

  • Keep source formatting keeps each document looking like the original. When a style name clashes, the later document's version is renamed, for example to Heading1_m2, and its default font and spacing are preserved.
  • Use first document's styles makes the merged file uniform. Headings and body text in every document follow the first file, which suits reports assembled from several authors.

Numbered lists are copied as separate lists, so numbering starts again in each document instead of continuing from the previous one.

After merging: update fields

Tables of contents, page numbers and cross-references are fields that Word calculates. After merging, press Ctrl+A and then F9 in Word to update them all, or right-click a table of contents and choose Update Field. A table of contents copied from one source file will then list headings from the whole merged document.

Troubleshooting

  • A .doc file won't add. The older Word 97-2003 format isn't supported. Open it in Word or LibreOffice and save it as .docx.
  • A file says it is password-protected or damaged. Remove the password in Word (File > Info > Protect Document) or re-save the file, then add it again.
  • Pages switch between portrait and landscape. Choose section breaks so each document keeps its own orientation.
  • The merged file is very large. Big photos are the usual cause. In Word, select a picture and use Compress Pictures before merging.

Merging other kinds of files? See the TXT Merger, Markdown Merger and HTML Merger.

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