How to evenly distribute columns in a table

Columns in a table can be uneven, and that can cause the table to not show the information correctly. The information may have to carry over to the next line, the left side of the column is smaller than the right side, or the table may just not look right. There is a way on Word to fix the table, so the columns are evenly distributed.

Below is an example of a table that has uneven columns:

The approval of minutes does not have enough room, so it has to be brought underneath the rest of the text to fit it in the cell. There is a way to fix that, so it will fit all on the same line.

1. First, click the upper left hand corner of the table where the little box appears and click that box to select the entire table. It will highlight the entire table like it did below.

2. After you select the table, click the layout tab unto the table tools group. In the cell size group, click distribute columns. This button will take the whole table and distribute all the columns to make the table look proportional. Distributing the columns also allows the text to fit in the cell without using multiple lines. (approval of minutes now fits on one line instead of carrying over minutes to another line)

There is another way to evenly distribute the columns of a table.

1. You will start by selecting the table by the box in the upper left corner of the table.

2. With the table still selected, right click and click distribute columns evenly.

This is not a hard step to do, but it is easy to forget. When creating tables, always evenly distribute the columns. Doing this step makes sure that every column is proportional to the others, and makes the table look neat and professional. 😊