To merge two Word documents, you can use Microsoft Word's built-in feature "Insert Text from File," which is straightforward and preserves most formatting. Here's how to do it:
- Open the Word document where you want to merge the other document(s).
- Place the cursor where you want to insert the content.
- Go to the Insert tab on the ribbon.
- Click on Object (usually in the Text group), then select Text from File from the dropdown menu.
- In the file dialog, select the Word document(s) you want to merge. You can hold Ctrl to select multiple files.
- Click Insert. The content of the selected documents will be inserted at the cursor position in the order you selected them
Notes:
- The merged documents will be combined in the order they appear in the file selection dialog. To control the order, insert files one by one in the desired sequence
- Formatting may not always be perfectly preserved, especially if the documents have different styles or complex formatting
- This method works on Word 2007 and later versions
Alternative methods:
- Copy and paste content manually if documents are short or if you want to control formatting precisely
- Use a master document with subdocuments if you frequently merge chapters or large documents
- Use online tools like iLoveMerge or Smallpdf to merge Word documents or convert them to PDF and merge, then convert back if needed
In summary, the easiest and most reliable way to merge two Word documents within Word is by using Insert > Object > Text from File and selecting the documents to insert. This method quickly combines documents into one file without extensive manual copying
