How to Reduce the Size of a Word Document?

Written content is no longer complete without images or some form of visual media. Such illustrations boost engagement and increase comprehension and understanding. 

But adding media to Word documents significantly bumps up the file size, which can be a problem when you want to share it. A large Word document can also put a larger processing burden on your computer and fill up your storage space. 

Also Read: How to Get More Storage on PC – Clean Up Your PC to Run Faster

So, if you’ve been asking, “Why is my Word document so large?” you now have your answer.

Thankfully, you can reduce your Word document size using different methods. Some of these methods are better than others because they don’t require many steps. Others are more effective because they compress Word documents to the smallest size possible.

Also Read: Disk Cleanup Tips: How to Compress a Drive to Save Disk Space in Windows 10

This article shows you 9 such reliable methods to reduce Word file size effortlessly.

1. Compress the Images in Your Word Document

Word documents are generally really small. Even a document with 1,000 pages could tally up to only 50 kb as long as they do not contain images. As mentioned earlier, including pictures in the Word document adds a bit of ‘weight’ to the file.

So, documents with few images can easily end up being quite large. In this case, if you want to reduce the size of your Word document, you can either remove the images or modify them somehow.

The easiest way to modify the images on your document in Word is to compress them. Microsoft Word makes the process easy as it is fitted with format options that reduce image size.

Here’s how to compress images in Word:

• Navigate to the image in your document and click it. This brings up an additional tab titled the Picture Format.
• Move your cursor to the Adjust ribbon and click on the Compress Pictures option.
• In the dialog box that pops up, choose the Apply only to this picture option.

This option will apply the compression setting you want to choose to the image that you clicked. But if you have more than one image in the document and want to compress all of them, uncheck the option.

• Choose the Delete cropped areas of pictures option.
• Select the Use default resolution option. This better integrates the compressed image with the rest of your document. You can choose Web resolution if you’re posting the content on a website or blog.
• Click OK to implement the changes.

That’s how to compress a picture in Word. Go to the next method if your Word file is still large.

2. Don’t Copy and Paste Images. Use the Insert Pictures Option

Adding images into Word documents generally involves using the copy-and-paste method or using the Insert menu in Word. The former is more common and is the easiest to do since you only need to copy the image from an outside source and use the Ctrl + V hotkey to paste it. 

Also Read: How to Fix Copy and Paste Not Working in Windows 10

However, copying and pasting isn’t necessarily the best way to add images to Word if you want to manage the size of your document. Going through the Insert menu allows Microsoft Word to adjust the image resolution so that it can seamlessly fit into the document without increasing the file size by a lot.

The Insert option may be as quick as copying and pasting, but it is also quite straightforward. These steps will show you what to do: 

1. Click on the area in your document that you want the picture inserted.
2. Navigate to the Insert tab on Word.
3. Click on the Pictures submenu. This action brings up two or three options for where your picture might be located.
4. Choose the most suitable option depending on the location of the image you want to insert. This might be from an online source or your computer (hard drive).

3. Format Images Before Inserting into the Word Document

As mentioned earlier, the Insert option cannot save you in every situation. The resulting document size after any compression method still depends on the original image.

If the original picture is a high-resolution photo, the Insert and Compress features in Word can only drop the size to an extent. So, the smart thing to do is to first format the original image before importing it into your document.

Windows offers you several methods to manipulate image size. The easiest to use of these options is Microsoft Paint. It helps you to quickly reduce the size of an image with a few clicks before inserting it into your Word document.

These steps will show you how to reduce the size of a Word document by formatting image sizes on Microsoft Paint:

• Make a copy of the image you want to format from the original location on your computer.
• Right-click on the copied image file and select the Open with option.
• Choose Paint from the side-drop options.
• On the Home tab, navigate to the Image menu and click Resize.
• Select Resize by percentage and change aspect values to 25, 50, or 75, depending on how much you want to shrink the image. Note that choosing values above 100 will enlarge the image instead.
• Leave the Maintain aspect ratio option checked and click OK.

Now, when you insert this formatted image in your Word document, it won’t ‘weigh’ as much as it would have with the original image.

4. Pay Attention to the Embedded Objects in Your Document

One other important factor that affects the size of your Word document is the presence of embedded objects. An embedded object in this context is an independent digital object that is included in your document. 

The object is referred to as independent because modifying it does not affect its source. A good example is a Microsoft Excel table.

So, if you embed said Excel table in your Word document, changing its cells does nothing to the original Excel file. 

Similarly, when you change the content of the file in Excel, nothing happens to the embedded one in your document. This way, an embedded object is different from a linked object.

But embedded objects come with extra baggage. So, avoid them if you can. If not, convert them to text so that Word takes them in as native objects.

To convert embedded objects in your Word document, simply use Ctrl + Shift + F9. This converts the object into a picture. If the object is an Excel file that you want to display, copy and paste the content of the table directly into the document.

5. Turn Off Font Embedding

Pictures and Excel files are not the only objects that can be embedded in a Word document. Font embedding is a word-processing method that allows documents to retain the same font styles. This way, if the document is shared with someone without the fonts on their computer, they can still see the texts in the original font style.

However, documents with embedded fonts tend to be larger than documents without.

These steps will show you how to reduce a Word document’s size by removing font embedding:

• Click File in the top-left corner of Microsoft Word.
• Select Options.
• From the ensuing menu, choose the Save tab on the left side of the menu.
• Scroll down to the Preserve fidelity when sharing this document.
• Make sure that the first option under this submenu (Embed fonts in the file) is unchecked.
• Click OK and close the File menu.

This should remove every font embedding in the Word document and reduce the document size.

You can also avoid embedded fonts by pasting content as plain text instead of allowing them to maintain their format. To do that, right-click the area where you want to paste text and select Keep Text Only under Paste Options.

6. Use Default Word Styles for Formatting (or Adjust These Styles for Your Use)

One of the things that Microsoft Word has in common with other office software packages is the default page. This page contains the original formatting for Word documents, including font style, font size, and page setup.

If you are like most Word users, you may want to use different formatting styles. However, until you make your preferred styles the default, using them will cost you a few more bytes. This is because using the default styles results in smaller documents on average.

So, make sure you use default or modified styles in your documents. This is especially effective for reducing document sizes when you apply them to headings and font sizes, as well as font colors and page setup. The fewer the changes to these styles, the better for smaller document sizes.

7. Make Word Save Changes Faster

So far, we have spun this article around Word documents that you share offline. However, when you share a document online, there is a chance that previous changes are not implemented on the original file.

In other words, Word might still include the weight of previously formatted objects. For example, the impact of embedded objects may reflect on the file even though those objects are no longer there. The chances of this are small, but they exist. 

So, ensure you always save every change to the document as soon as you can. This means tapping the Ctrl + S keyboard combination after typing for a while or turning on the AutoSave function. A better option is to change AutoRecover settings.

To change AutoRecover settings once again:

• Navigate to the File tab in Word and click it.
• Scroll down to Options and click it.
• From the menu that pops up, choose the Save tab on the left side of the menu.
• Move your cursor to the Save documents option.
• Focus on the Save AutoRecover information every … option, and reduce the time allotted to this function. Reducing it to 2 minutes is fine.
• Click OK and close the File menu.

8. Save a Copy of the Document Without Tracking Changes

One other tricky formatting option that often increases the size of documents in Word is the Track Changes function. This function is intended to help you track the changes you make to a document over time and possibly reverse them. 

However, when the function is running, it adds a bit more weight to your document. Thus, if you want to reduce the size of a document that is tracking changes, all you need to do is deactivate this function.

You can opt for writing assistants such as Grammarly to make your work error-free instead.

Also Read: Why is Grammarly not showing up in Microsoft Word?

Follow these steps to stop the Track Changes function in Word,

1. Move your cursor to the Review tab and click it.
2. Navigate to the Changes ribbon and click on the Accept dropdown menu.
3. From the ensuing options, select Accept All Changes and Stop Tracking.

This deactivates the tracking function on your document and also reduces the document size.

9. Save a Copy of the Document in PDF Format and Optimize

When you compare Word documents (that is, documents with .docx extension) with PDF documents with the same content, you will find that the latter is always considerably smaller. The main reason for this difference is that the PDF format can publish document graphics in smaller resolutions. This is the result of optimization.

Therefore, saving a copy of the document in PDF format is another way to compress a Word file. However, it’s important to note that you will be blocking the document from edits when you export it as a PDF file.

Also Read: How to Lock a Word Document and Protect It from Editing

These steps will show you how to compress a Word document by saving it as PDF:

• Click on the File tab and choose the Save As option from the ensuing menu.

• Select where you want the file to be saved on your computer.
• In the Save As dialog box, change the file name to your preference and choose PDF in the Save as type option.
• Move your cursor down a bit to the Optimize for submenu and click on Minimum size (publishing online).
• Move your cursor to the right and click the Tools option.
• Choose your preferred resolution and click OK.
• Click Save to save the document in the styled PDF format you just completed.

That ought to reduce the size of your document considerably. However, keep in mind that this size reduction only works on the new PDF file. Your original document in DOCX format remains the same size.

Conclusion

That’s how All in all, whichever of these 9 methods you use, make sure to go over the document once again. Document size reduction is useless if you end up losing vital parts of the document. So, ensure that you reduce the document’s size without losing any of its content.

Also Read: How to repair and recover a corrupted Microsoft Word file

FAQ

What Is the Ideal Image Resolution for Word Documents?

When choosing a resolution, you have to balance your need to reduce your file size with the image’s purpose. For example, a web resolution may not work well for printing. That said, 220 pixels per inch (PPI) is generally ideal for Word documents. You can reduce it further depending on where you’re publishing your work.

Can I Reduce the Size of a Password-protected Document?

If you have access to the document, you can open it, create a copy, and reduce its size. You can also compress it to a ZIP file.

How Can I Reduce the Size of a Document on a Mac?

You can reduce a document’s size on macOS by using the Reduce File Size and Compress functions.

Does Reducing the Document Size Affect the Quality of Images?

Yes, image quality can be reduced, depending on the method you use. However, the reduction won’t significantly affect how you use those images.

Are There Online Services for Reducing Document Size?

Yes, numerous online services exist that can help you reduce your file size.