How to Convert a Table Back to Text in Word

You have a table in a Word document and you want to remove the table structure while keeping the content. Maybe you imported data from Excel or created a table during drafting, but now you need plain text for formatting or export purposes. Word provides a built-in command that converts a table to text in seconds. This article explains the exact steps to convert a table back to text, how to control separator characters, and what to watch out for when using this feature.

What the Convert Table to Text Feature Does

The Convert Table to Text command removes all table structure from a selected table. This includes borders, shading, cell merging, and column widths. The content from each cell is placed into the document as regular text. The command does not delete any text, numbers, or formatting applied to the text itself, such as bold, italic, or font size.

You can choose how the text is separated. The four built-in separator options are:

• Tabs: Each cell becomes a separate column separated by a tab character. Rows become separate paragraphs. This works well when you want to paste the text into a spreadsheet later.
• Commas: Cells are separated by commas. Rows become separate paragraphs. This creates a CSV-style output.
• Paragraph marks: Each cell becomes its own paragraph. Rows are ignored for separation.
• Other: You can type any single character, such as a pipe | or a semicolon ;, to use as a separator.

No prerequisites are required. The table can be any size, with any number of rows and columns. Merged cells are handled automatically: the content from merged cells appears as a single block of text in the output.

Steps to Convert a Table Back to Text in Word

1. Place the cursor inside the table
   Click anywhere inside the table you want to convert. The Table Tools contextual ribbon appears in the menu bar with two tabs: Design and Layout.
2. Open the Layout tab under Table Tools
   Click the Layout tab. It is the second tab under Table Tools, not the main Layout tab that appears for page setup.
3. Click Convert to Text in the Data group
   On the far right of the Layout tab, locate the Data group. Click the Convert to Text button. The Convert Table to Text dialog opens.
4. Select a separator character
   In the dialog, choose one of the four separator options: Tabs, Commas, Paragraph marks, or Other. If you choose Other, type the desired character in the text box. The preview area below the options shows a sample of how the text will appear.
5. Click OK
   Word removes the table structure and places the cell content as plain text using the selected separator. The original table is gone. You can undo this action by pressing Ctrl+Z immediately if the result is not what you expected.

What Happens to Table Formatting and Content

When you convert a table to text, Word removes all table-specific formatting. This includes:

• Table borders and gridlines
• Cell shading and background colors
• Column widths and row heights
• Cell merging and splitting
• Table alignment and text wrapping
• Header row repetition

Text formatting that is applied directly to the text inside the cells, such as font, size, bold, italic, underline, color, and hyperlinks, is preserved. Paragraph formatting, such as line spacing and indentation, is also kept for each cell’s content after conversion.

Common Issues When Converting a Table to Text

The Convert to Text button is grayed out or not visible

This happens when your cursor is not inside a table. Click inside any cell of the table to make the Table Tools contextual ribbon appear. If the table is inside a text box or a content control, Word may not recognize it as a table. In that case, copy the table content, paste it outside the control, and try again.

Text appears in the wrong order after conversion

Word reads cells left to right, top to bottom. If your table has merged cells or a complex layout, the text order may not match the visual arrangement. For example, a merged cell that spans multiple rows will output its content once, at the position of the first cell in the merge. To fix this, reorganize the table into a simple grid before converting, or manually rearrange the text after conversion.

Extra blank lines appear between rows of text

When you select Paragraph marks as the separator, each cell becomes its own paragraph. If the table has many columns, this creates many blank lines between what was previously a single row. Use Tabs or Commas instead to keep each row on one line. You can also use Find and Replace (Ctrl+H) to remove extra paragraph marks after conversion.

Table is part of a linked Excel object and cannot be edited in Word

If the table was pasted as a linked Excel worksheet object, the Convert to Text command is not available. Double-click the table to open it in Excel, copy the data, paste it into Word as plain text, or use Paste Special to embed the data as a Word table first.

Convert Table to Text: Separator Comparison

Separator	Best Use Case	Output Structure
Tabs	Pasting into Excel or a spreadsheet	Each row becomes a paragraph, cells separated by tabs
Commas	Creating a CSV file for data import	Each row becomes a paragraph, cells separated by commas
Paragraph marks	Flattening a table into separate blocks of text	Each cell becomes its own paragraph
Other (e.g., pipe | or semicolon 😉	Custom data formats or avoiding commas inside cell text	Each row becomes a paragraph, cells separated by the custom character

Now you can remove a table structure from any Word document without losing the content inside it. Choose the separator that matches your next task, such as tabs for spreadsheet work or commas for data export. For tables with merged cells, simplify the layout before converting to avoid scrambled text order. After conversion, use Find and Replace to fine-tune the spacing or separators if needed.