Superscript and Subscript in Microsoft Word (Step-by-Step)

In this post you’ll discover the power of Microsoft Word’s SUPERSCRIPT and SUBSCRIPT formatting tools and how they can add that finishing touch to your Microsoft Word document formatting.

Mastering Microsoft Word superscript and subscript formatting has the following benefits:

• Professionally-presented documents – Your mathematical equations, chemical formulas, and citations will look sleek and polished.
• Enhanced readability – Important notations like dates, degrees, formulas and chemical symbols are immediately recognisable

1. What is superscript and where would you use it?

Superscripted text is smaller and sits above the baseline, e.g.

• 16^th September
• 360^o
• 4² (Microsoft Word equations)

2. What is subscript and where would you use it?

Subscripted text is smaller and sits below the baseline, e.g.

• H₂O
• CO₂

3. How to apply superscript or subscript

First select the text to superscript or subscript then use one of these 3 methods.

Method 1: Use the font-formatting icons on the Home ribbon

1Select the Home tab.

2Click the Superscript or Subscript icons in the Font group.

Method 2: Check the super/subscript boxes in the Font dialog

1Select the Home tab.

2Click the launcher icon in the bottom-right corner of the Font group.

The Font dialog box is displayed. The Text Effects occupy the lower half of the box. Superscript and Subscript are two of the options.

Method 3: Use keyboard shortcuts

• The superscript shortcut in Microsoft Word is Ctrl + Shift + ‘+’.
• The subscript shortcut in Microsoft Word is Ctrl + ‘+’.

5. Troubleshooting steps

• Text appears too small or large – Check your font size settings; superscript and subscript automatically adjust but may need manual tweaking for very large or small base fonts.
• The super/subscript does not appear– Ensure you have selected the text first before clicking the superscript/subscript buttons.
• Superscript/subscript icons are greyed out – Make sure you’re in a text editing area and not in a header, footer, or protected section.
• Superscript/subscript disappears when copying text – Use Paste Special and choose “Keep Source Formatting” to preserve superscript/subscript when moving text between documents.

6. FAQs

Q: Can I apply both superscript and subscript to the same character?
A: No, they are mutually exclusive. You cannot use both simultaneously.

Q: How do I remove superscript or subscript formatting?
A: Select the superscripted or subscripted text. Press Ctrl+Spacebar to convert back to regular text or click the superscript or subscript icons again to toggle off.

Q: Do superscript and subscript work in all fonts?
A: Yes, but the appearance may vary slightly between fonts. Some decorative fonts may not display superscript/subscript as clearly as standard fonts like Times New Roman or Calibri. Each fonts has different line spacing and vertical positioning so superscripted or subscripted text may appear higher or lower. If you want to get super-fancy, you can click the Advanced tab in the Font dialog, then adjust the Position setting to raise of lower the super/subscript text.

Q: Can I change the size of superscript or subscript text independently?
A: Yes, select the superscript/subscript text and manually adjust the font size on the Home ribbon or the context toolbar, though this may also affect the baseline positioning.

Q: Will superscript and subscript formatting be preserved when I save as PDF?
A: Yes, these formatting options are preserved in PDF exports and most other file formats.

7. What next?

Do you want to explore this further. Here are some other advanced text effects you may be interested in.