How to Crop a Photo in Word: 4 Quick & Easy Ways

PDF download Download Article
Learn to resize or cut a shape out of a picture in Word
PDF download Download Article

Do you have an image you need to crop in Microsoft Word? You can easily resize the edges by using a simple margin crop. If you need to shape pictures or round picture edges out, you can use a shape crop. For more uniform photos, you can use an aspect ratio crop. Here are all the ways you can crop a picture in Word using your Windows or Mac computer.

Crop Pictures in Microsoft Word

To crop a picture in Microsoft Word, select the picture and click the Picture Format tab at the top. Click the Crop button to select a regular Crop , Crop to Shape , or Aspect Ratio . Drag the black handles to adjust the image crop.

Method 1
Method 1 of 4:

Using a Margin Crop

PDF download Download Article
  1. Open your Microsoft Word document. If you don't already have a picture added , click the Insert tab at the top and select Pictures . You can select a picture from your device, a stock image, or an image from the web. [1]
  2. If it isn't already selected, click it to select it. The Picture Format tab should open at the top.
    Advertisement
  3. This is in the Size section of the Picture Format tab. Black lines should appear around the image.
    • If you click the down-arrow instead, select Crop from the drop-down menu.
  4. Click and drag inward any of the black bars on the edges or in the corners of the picture to do so.
    • To crop equally on two parallel sides at the same time, hold CTRL (Windows) or CMD (Mac) as you drag the cropping handle.
    • The section inside of the black lines is what you'll keep after cropping.
  5. You can also click anywhere outside of the picture. This will remove any section of the picture that falls outside of the black bars' limits.
    • If needed, you can undo the crop by pressing CTRL + Z (Windows) or CMD + Z (Mac).
    • Be sure to save your changes .
    6. Advertisement
Method 2
Method 2 of 4:

Using a Shaped Crop

PDF download Download Article
  1. Open your Microsoft Word document. If you don't already have a picture added, click the Insert tab at the top and select Pictures . You can select a picture from your device, a stock image, or an image from the web.
    • Use this method to crop an image to fit a certain shape. [2]
  2. If it isn't already selected, click it to select it. The Picture Format tab should open at the top.
  3. This is in the Size section of the Picture Format tab. A drop-down menu should open.
  4. This is in the drop-down menu. Doing so prompts a pop-out menu with shapes.
  5. Click the shape in which you want your picture to appear. This will immediately apply the shape to the picture.
  6. Click and drag inward or outward any of the circular points around the picture's outline to decrease or increase the picture's size.
    • If needed, you can undo the crop by pressing CTRL + Z (Windows) or CMD + Z (Mac).
    • If the shape isn't applying the way you want, you can try [[#Adding-a-Picture-to-a-Shape
    • |adding the shape first]] followed by the picture.
    • Be sure to save your changes.
    7. Advertisement
Method 3
Method 3 of 4:

Using an Aspect Ratio Crop

PDF download Download Article
  1. Open your Microsoft Word document. If you don't already have a picture added, click the Insert tab at the top and select Pictures . You can select a picture from your device, a stock image, or an image from the web.
    • Using an aspect ratio crop is helpful if you need to resize the picture to fit a certain requirement, or if you want your pictures to be more uniform across the document.
  2. If it isn't already selected, click it to select it. The Picture Format tab should open at the top.
  3. This is in the Size section of the Picture Format tab. A drop-down menu should open.
  4. This option is in the drop-down menu. Doing so prompts a pop-out menu to appear.
  5. In the pop-out menu, click one of the aspect ratios you'd like to use to crop your picture.
  6. Click and drag your picture around until you've centered the section you want to keep in the aspect ratio's square or rectangle.
  7. You can also click anywhere outside of the picture. This will remove any section of the picture that falls outside of the black bars' limits.
    • If needed, you can undo the crop by pressing CTRL + Z (Windows) or CMD + Z (Mac).
    • Be sure to save your changes.
    8. Advertisement
Method 4
Method 4 of 4:

Adding a Picture to a Shape

PDF download Download Article
  1. This is in the top toolbar.
  2. You can find this in the Illustrations section of the toolbar.
  3. You can use any shape within the drop-down menu.
  4. Click one spot on the document and drag your cursor to create the shape. You can make it as big or small as needed. The shape will be created once you release the mouse button.
    • If needed, resize the shape by dragging one of the outer circles inwards or outwards.
  5. This is in the top toolbar. If you don't see it, double-click the shape.
  6. A drop-down menu will open.
  7. This is towards the bottom of the drop-down menu.
  8. You can select a picture from your device, a stock image, or an image from the web. Once selected, click Insert .
    • The picture will be added to the shape.
    9. Advertisement

Community Q&A

Search
Add New Question
  • Question
    How do I make a cropped picture to fit it into another?
    Community Answer
    Double click or right click the image (depending on what computer/mouse you have), and click on the little icon that looks like a bold triangle. You can also go to the "help" tab and type in "crop" for more hands-on help.
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
    Thank you for your feedback.
    If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
    Yes No
    Not Helpful 3 Helpful 1
  • Question
    What's the advanced way of cropping a picture in Word?
    Community Answer
    If you have a Windows configuration on your laptop, just press the Windows button and then the shift button and then the S button. Do this while on the screen you want to screenshot and then drag your cursor to screenshot the section you want. Then simply press CTRL + V (PASTE). But make sure to set the pasted picture to an image format.
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
    Thank you for your feedback.
    If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
    Yes No
    Not Helpful 1 Helpful 4
Ask a Question
200 characters left
Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.
Submit
      Advertisement

      Video

      Tips

      Submit a Tip
      All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published
      Name
      Please provide your name and last initial
      Submit
      Thanks for submitting a tip for review!
      Advertisement

      You Might Also Like

      How to
      Add Check Boxes to Word: 10 Simple Steps
      How to
      Remove a Blank Page in Word
      Easily Add Page Numbers to a Word Document on Any Platform
      How to
      Create and Edit the Table of Contents in Word
      How to
      Insert Equations in Microsoft Word
      3 Easy Ways to Delete a Horizontal Line in a Word Document
      How to
      Add a Horizontal Line in Microsoft Word: Step-by-Step
      Easily Format Word Docs from Scratch or Using Templates
      How to
      Use Microsoft Word
      How to
      Insert a Background Picture in Word: Full Guide
      3 Simple Ways to Insert a Hyperlink in Microsoft Word
      Easily Delete a Header from the Second Page in Word
      Making a Poster Using Microsoft Word: Step-by-Step
      6 Ways to Format and Print a Booklet in Word
      Advertisement

      References

      1. ↑ https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/crop-a-picture-in-office-14d69647-bc93-4f06-9528-df95103aa1e6#officeversion=windows
      2. ↑ https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/crop-a-picture-to-fit-in-a-shape-1ce8cf89-6a19-4ee4-82ca-4f8e81469590

      About This Article

      In other languages
      Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 291,344 times.

      Is this article up to date?

      Advertisement