How to Make One Page Landscape in Microsoft Word

To make only one page landscape in Microsoft Word, select the content on that page, open the Page Setup dialog, choose Landscape, and set Apply to to Selected text. Word creates the necessary section boundaries so the pages before and after can remain portrait.

If the target page is blank, contains content that is difficult to select, or needs exact section control, insert section breaks before and after it instead. A regular page break is not enough because page orientation is a section-level setting.

Method 1: Make selected content landscape

This is usually the quickest method in Word for Microsoft 365, Word 2024, 2021, 2019, and 2016.

Select all text, images, tables, and other content that should appear on the landscape page.
Open the Layout tab and click the small Page Setup dialog launcher in the lower-right corner of the Page Setup group.

Selected content and the Page Setup launcher in Word — Select the content, then open the Page Setup dialog.

Under Orientation, choose Landscape.
Set Apply to to Selected text, then select OK.

Landscape and Selected text options in Word Page Setup — Apply Landscape orientation to the selected text.

Word may move the selection to a separate page so it can create a landscape section. Check the result in File > Print before printing or exporting to PDF.

A landscape page between portrait pages in Word — The selected content is placed on a landscape page while surrounding pages stay portrait.

Microsoft documents the same workflow in its page-orientation instructions.

Method 2: Use Page Setup from a specific point

This method creates the first boundary by applying Landscape from the cursor onward, then creates a second boundary by restoring Portrait after the target page.

Place the cursor at the beginning of the page that should be landscape.
Go to Layout and open the Page Setup dialog.

Opening Page Setup from the Layout tab in Word — Open Page Setup at the start of the target page.

Choose Landscape, set Apply to to This point forward, and select OK.

Applying Landscape orientation from this point forward — Apply Landscape from the cursor onward.

Place the cursor at the beginning of the following page. Open Page Setup again, choose Portrait, and apply it to This point forward.

Restoring Portrait orientation after the landscape page — Restore Portrait orientation after the target page.

Single landscape page in a portrait Word document — Only the section between the two changes remains landscape.

Method 3: Insert section breaks manually

Use this method when you need predictable boundaries, especially for a blank page, a wide table, or a document with several layout changes.

Place the cursor at the start of the target page.
Go to Layout > Breaks. Under Section Breaks, choose Next Page when the landscape content should begin on a new page. Choose Continuous only when the section change should start at the current position on the same page.

Inserting a section break before the target page — Insert a section break before the landscape section.

Place the cursor at the start of the page after the target page and insert another section break.

Inserting a second section break after the target page — Add a second section break after the page.

Click anywhere between the two section breaks, then choose Layout > Orientation > Landscape.

Choosing Landscape for the selected Word section — Change only the isolated section to Landscape.

Landscape section among portrait pages in Word — The pages outside the section retain their original orientation.

Microsoft's section-break guide explains that orientation, margins, and columns can differ by section. For more examples, see TipsMake's guide to mixing portrait and landscape pages in Word.

Steps for Word 2007

Word 2007 uses the Page Layout tab rather than the newer Layout label, but the underlying process is the same.

Use the Page Setup dialog

Place the cursor at the start of the target page. Open Page Layout, then click the Page Setup dialog launcher.

Page Setup launcher in Word 2007 — Open Page Setup from the Page Layout tab.

Choose Landscape and apply it to This point forward.

Applying Landscape from this point forward in Word 2007 — Start the landscape section.

At the start of the following page, reopen Page Setup, choose Portrait, and apply it to This point forward.

Restoring Portrait orientation in Word 2007 — Restore Portrait after the target page.

One landscape page in Word 2007 — The middle page remains landscape.

Use section breaks in Word 2007

For precise control, place the cursor before the target page and choose Page Layout > Breaks, then insert a section break.

Adding a section break in Word 2007 — Add a section break before the page.

To confirm the page is in a separate section, display formatting marks with Home > Show/Hide (�). You do not need to open the header merely to verify the break.

Inspecting sections in Word 2007 — Check the section boundary before the target page.

Separate sections in a Word 2007 document — The target page begins in a separate section.

Insert a second section break after the target page, then click within the isolated section and choose Page Layout > Orientation > Landscape.

Adding the second section break in Word 2007 — End the landscape section with another break.

Choosing Landscape orientation for a Word 2007 section — Apply Landscape to the isolated section.

Print Preview showing one landscape page in Word 2007 — Use Print Preview to confirm the result.

Troubleshooting

The whole document turned landscape

Undo the change, then select only the intended content or insert section breaks on both sides of the target page. In Page Setup, verify that Apply to is not set to Whole document.

An extra blank page appeared

Turn on Home > Show/Hide (�) and inspect the break type. A Next Page section break intentionally starts a new page; replace it with Continuous only if the layout should change without forcing a new page. Do not delete a section break casually, because Word merges the surrounding sections and adopts the formatting of the section that follows.

Headers, footers, or page numbers changed

Section breaks can also define header, footer, and page-number behavior. Check whether Link to Previous is enabled before changing those elements. TipsMake's guide to different headers and footers in Word sections explains the controls.

The table still does not fit

Landscape orientation gives the page more horizontal space, but a very wide table may still overflow. Adjust column widths, margins, font size, or table AutoFit settings rather than shrinking the entire document. If you are still learning the Ribbon, review the basic Microsoft Word interface.