How to Add a List of Figures Beside a Word Table of Contents

Many business documents require both a table of contents and a list of figures, but Word places them on separate pages by default. You want to save space and present both lists side by side on the same page for a cleaner layout. This article explains how to use two-column sections and caption styles to place a list of figures beside a table of contents. You will learn the exact steps to insert both lists, align them with columns, and keep them update-friendly when the document changes.

How Word Generates a Table of Contents and a List of Figures

Word builds a table of contents by scanning heading styles — Heading 1, Heading 2, and Heading 3 — in your document. Each heading becomes an entry with the page number where it appears. The list of figures works the same way but uses figure captions. You must insert captions on your images, charts, or tables using the References > Insert Caption command. Word then collects those captions into a list sorted by page number.

Both lists update automatically when you right-click the list and choose Update Field. However, placing them side by side requires a small structural trick: you insert the TOC and the list of figures into separate columns within a single section. The columns feature in Word lets you split a page into two or more vertical blocks, each flowing text independently. When you put the TOC in the left column and the list of figures in the right column, they appear beside each other.

Prerequisites Before You Start

Before you create the side-by-side layout, make sure your document has the following elements already in place:

• Heading styles applied to all section titles — use Heading 1, Heading 2, and Heading 3 consistently.
• Figure captions inserted on every image, chart, or table you want to list. Use References > Insert Caption. Word labels them as Figure 1, Figure 2, and so on.
• A blank page at the beginning of the document where you will place both lists. If your TOC already exists on a separate page, you can convert that page to columns.

Steps to Insert a Two-Column Table of Contents and List of Figures

Follow these steps exactly. You will create a section with two columns, insert the TOC in the left column, and insert the list of figures in the right column.

1. Insert a section break before the TOC page
   Place your cursor at the end of the paragraph that comes just before the blank page where the TOC will go. Go to Layout > Breaks > Next Page. This creates a new section starting on the next page. The column settings you apply later will affect only this new section.
2. Set the page to two columns
   With your cursor on the blank page (the new section), go to Layout > Columns > Two. The page splits into two equal columns. Your cursor is now in the left column by default.
3. Insert the table of contents in the left column
   Go to References > Table of Contents and choose Automatic Table 1 or Automatic Table 2. Word inserts the TOC in the left column. The TOC includes all headings from the entire document.
4. Insert a column break to move to the right column
   Place your cursor at the end of the TOC (after the last entry). Go to Layout > Breaks > Column. Word moves the cursor to the top of the right column.
5. Insert the list of figures in the right column
   Go to References > Insert Table of Figures. In the dialog box, set Caption label to Figure. Leave all other settings as default and click OK. Word inserts the list of figures in the right column.
6. Adjust column width for readability
   If the columns look too narrow or too wide, click inside the two-column section. Go to Layout > Columns > More Columns. In the dialog box, uncheck Equal column width, then set the left column to a wider value such as 3 inches and the right column to 2.5 inches. Click OK.
7. Update both lists after editing the document
   Right-click the TOC and choose Update Field > Update entire table. Do the same for the list of figures. The page numbers and entries refresh to reflect any new headings or captions you added.

Common Layout Problems and How to Fix Them

The list of figures appears below the TOC instead of beside it

This happens when you insert the list of figures without a column break. The list flows into the same column as the TOC. To fix it, place your cursor at the start of the list of figures, press Backspace to delete the list, then follow step 4 and step 5 again. Make sure you insert a column break before inserting the list.

The TOC or list of figures overflows into the next page

If either list contains too many entries to fit in one column, Word pushes the overflow to the next page. To solve this, reduce the font size of the TOC and list of figures. Select the TOC, go to Home, and set the font size to 10 or 9 points. Do the same for the list of figures. Alternatively, make the columns wider by following step 6 and increasing both column widths.

The column break does not move the cursor to the next column

This occurs when the page is still set to one column. Verify that the page has two columns by looking at the ruler at the top of the page — you should see two column markers. If not, repeat step 2. If the page is already in two columns and the break still does not work, delete the column break and insert it again using Layout > Breaks > Column.

Two-Column TOC vs Two-Column List of Figures: Layout Behavior

Item	Table of Contents	List of Figures
Source of entries	Heading styles (Heading 1, 2, 3)	Figure captions (Figure 1, 2, etc)
Update method	Right-click > Update Field > Update entire table	Right-click > Update Field > Update entire table
Column placement	Left column after a column break	Right column after a column break
Overflow handling	Flows to next page in same column	Flows to next page in same column

Both lists behave identically when they overflow — they continue in the same column on the next page. To keep them on one page, limit the number of entries or reduce font size as described in the previous section.

You can now place a table of contents and a list of figures side by side on the same page in Word. Use section breaks and column breaks to control the layout precisely. For long documents, test the layout after each major edit by updating both fields. If you need more than two lists, add a third column using Layout > Columns > Three and insert column breaks between each list.