TOC not indenting properly

Michelle 20 Reputation points
2024-06-11T15:02:18.3066667+00:00

I have a large document that uses headings 1,2, and 3. I added the "Classic" table of contents from the templates that are already made. The preview of what the TOC should look like shows the different headings indented. However, when I added the TOC to my document, they were not indented. I'm using the "Classic", but have tried it with the other options as well. I've also tried doing a custom TOC and it still isn't indenting properly.

Classic TOC

Screenshot 2024-06-11 at 9.50.57 AM.png

"Drinks/Cocktails" & "Breakfast" are Heading 1. The items under it are Heading 2. As you can see, they are NOT indented as the template shows they are supposed to be. I've also added a photo showing that "Drinks/Cocktails" are indeed set to Heading 1.

Screenshot 2024-06-11 at 9.52.21 AM.png

Screenshot 2024-06-11 at 10.00.36 AM.png

"Salads" is Heading 1; "Ahi Tuna Salad", "Chicken Salad", & "Dressings" are Heading 2; "Balsamic Dressing", "Italian Dressing", & "Ranch Dressing" are all Heading 3. Again, there is no indention as the format should be.

Screenshot 2024-06-11 at 9.51.28 AM.png

Word
Word
A family of Microsoft word processing software products for creating web, email, and print documents.
736 questions
0 comments
Accepted answer
  1. Jiajing Hua-MFST 7,315 Reputation points Microsoft Vendor
    2024-06-17T03:14:58.78+00:00

    Hi @Michelle

    Thanks for your back and sharing.

    By the way, since the Microsoft Q&A community has a policy that "The question author cannot accept their own answer. They can only accept answers by others.", and according to the scenario introduced here: Answering your own questions on Microsoft Q&A, I would make a brief summary of this thread:

    Thread title:

    TOC not indenting properly

    Issue Symptom:

    Using different type of TOCs, but incorrect indentation.

    If adjusting indentation manually using the "Increase Indent" button, once the table is updated the indentation is incorrect again.

    Current Status:

    This issue has gone away after installing Office updates.

    If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it. If you have extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment".

    Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.

    0 comments

2 additional answers

Sort by: Most helpful
Most helpful Newest Oldest
  1. Stefan Blom 2,131 Reputation points MVP
    2024-06-13T07:19:37.26+00:00

    Modify the individual TOC styles (TOC 1, TOC 2, etc.) so that they have the settings you want.

    1 person found this answer helpful.
  2. Jiajing Hua-MFST 7,315 Reputation points Microsoft Vendor
    2024-06-12T06:10:03.87+00:00

    Hi @Michelle

    Does this issue occur with other heading styles?

    Please ensure the outline levels heading styles you set are correct.

    I suggest you select some headers such as Heading 1 "Drinks/Cocktails", Heading 2 "Eggnog (Gene)", right-click on them one by one > choose "Paragraph", then take screenshots and share with us.

    Besides, you may backup the document first, use the "Increase Indent" button or right-click one heading 2/heading 3 > "Paragraph", set the Indentation you want > OK.

    enter image description here

    Then click "Update Table" > "Update entire table".

    If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it. If you have extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment".

    Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.