How do I maintain a header only on the first page?

Question

I have a document that has a header. However, I only want the header on the first page. If I check "different first page," it leaves the header on all pages EXCEPT the first page. How do I keep the header on only the first page?

Answer 1

Open the header on the first page by double-clicking the top area of the page. Highlight the existing header text and press Ctrl+C to copy it.

In the Header & Footer tab, select Different First Page. This separates the first-page header from the headers used on subsequent pages. The existing text may temporarily disappear or appear in the regular header area.

Return to the top of the first page, where the header should now be labeled First Page Header, and press Ctrl+V to paste your header text there.

Then go to page two. Its header should be labeled Header. If the header text is still present, highlight it and press Delete. Because Different First Page is enabled, deleting the text from the page-two header will not remove it from the first-page header.

Finally, click Close Header and Footer or press Esc to return to the document.

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hth

Marcin

Answer 2

Each section of a Word document has three headers:

• The primary header (which becomes the odd-page header if you choose different even and odd)
• The even-page header which is activated by choosing different even and odd, and
• The first-page header which is activated by clicking on different first page.

When you clicked on different first page, you activated the first-page header (and footer) and bumped whatever you had to be for everything except the first page. As Marcin points out, you should first copy (cut?) the information in your header, then activate the first-page header, and paste. You will likely want to also delete an extra paragraph mark at the end when you do this.

• Quick Reference Card (pdf) for Headers, Footers and Page Numbers https://www.addbalance.com/word/download.htm#hfQuickReference
• Recap of Header and Footer Settings https://www.addbalance.com/usersguide/sections2007.htm#Recap_of_Header/Footer_settings
• How Can I Get a Different Header/Footer or the Second Page? https://addbalance.com/word/headersfooters.htm#2007-2013

Answer 3

Use a section break so the first page is its own section, then remove the header from the following section.

Steps in Word:

1. Put the cursor at the end of page 1.
2. Go to Layout > Breaks > Next Page to create a section break.
3. Double-click the header area on page 2 to open Header & Footer.
4. Select Link to Previous to turn it off.
5. On page 2, select Header > Remove Header.
6. Leave the header on page 1 as-is.
7. Select Close Header and Footer or press Esc.

Why this works:

• Different First Page removes the header from the first page of a section.
• To keep a header only on page 1, page 1 must be in a separate section from the rest of the document.

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References:

• Change or delete a header or footer on a single page
• Insert a header or footer