If you have typed out a long list of employee names, a bibliography, or an index of terms in Microsoft Word, manually reorganizing them into alphabetical order is incredibly tedious. Instead of cutting and pasting lines of text one by one, you can use Word’s built-in sorting tool to instantly alphabetize any list with a single click.
How to Sort a Simple List
This method works for standard paragraphs, bulleted lists, and numbered lists.
- Open your Microsoft Word document.
- Use your mouse to highlight the entire list of text you want to sort. (Do not highlight the title or header above the list, only the actual items).
- Navigate to the Home tab in the ribbon menu at the top of the screen.
- Look in the “Paragraph” section for an icon that shows the letters A and Z with a downward-pointing arrow next to them. This is the Sort button. Click it.
- A “Sort Text” dialogue box will appear. Under “Sort by,” it should automatically say Paragraphs. Under “Type,” it should say Text.
- Ensure the radio button for Ascending is checked (this sorts from A to Z. If you want Z to A, select Descending).
- Click OK.
Your list will instantly snap into perfect alphabetical order. If it was a numbered list, Word will automatically update the numbers so they remain in the correct sequence.
How to Sort a Table Alphabetically
If your data is formatted inside a Word table rather than a standard list, the process is slightly different but just as easy.
- Click anywhere inside your table.
- A new tab called Layout (under the “Table Tools” section) will appear at the top of your screen. Click it.
- On the far right side of the ribbon, click the Sort button.
- In the dialogue box, use the “Sort by” dropdown menu to select the specific column you want to alphabetize (e.g., Column 1 for Last Names).
- If your table has a header row (like “First Name,” “Last Name”), ensure the My list has: Header row option is selected at the bottom so your headers do not get sorted into the data.
- Click OK.