In going to Print Mode in Microsoft Word 2019, all the margins for the text shift over. Cannot print document. Data in grid.

Question

I created a grid that I use for tracking daily glucose levels before meals. I print out the form every two weeks in order to enter the weekly/monthly totals. All of a sudden, I find that when the dates are added, when I go to print out the updated document, the Print Menu preview shows that all the texts have shifted to the right for some reason. What is causing this and how might I correct the form such that it will print out with the texts in their proper places?

Answer 1

Here is a link to a document with text set in the table. Please try this out with your printer: Blood Glucose.docx

Answer 2

It appears that you have created a grid, then placed the text in front of that grid. Instead, click in each cell where you want a date and type the number directly into the cell. The numbers will then stay aligned within the table as expected.

Feel free to post your document to a cloud service, then post a password-free share link here so we can take a closer look at it.

Answer 3

This usually happens because Word is changing the page layout at print time based on printer settings rather than the document layout itself.

The most likely causes supported here are:

1. Paper size mismatch If the document is set up for one paper size but the printer is using another, text can reflow and shift in Print Preview.
2. Scale content setting is enabled In Word, the setting Scale content for A4 or 8.5 x 11 paper sizes can cause the document to shift or reformat when going to print.
3. Printer minimum margin limits If any content is too close to the page edge, Word may adjust the printable layout because the printer cannot print to the very edge of the paper.

Try this in Word 2019:

1. Go to File > Options > Advanced.
2. Scroll to the Print section.
3. Make sure Scale content for A4 or 8.5 x 11 paper sizes is cleared.
4. Open File > Print and verify the printer is using the same paper size as the document.
   • If the form was created for Letter, make sure the printer is also set to Letter.
   • If it was created for A4, make sure the printer is also set to A4.
5. If the preview still shifts, check the document margins:
   • Go to Layout > Margins > Custom Margins.
   • Increase the margins slightly if any text or borders are close to the page edge.

If the issue is with borders or content near the edge not printing correctly, Word’s guidance is to increase the corresponding margin because printers have a minimum printable area.

If the document itself looks correct in Word but only the top and bottom white space looks different on screen, that can also be just hidden margins in Print Layout view. Double-click the top or bottom edge of the page to toggle the margin display back on.

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