Small Caps in Word: A Step-by-Step Guide

This guide shows you how to apply the small caps text effect in Microsoft Word, which turns lowercase letters into smaller versions of capital letters while keeping the first letter of each word full-sized. It is a formatting trick often used for headings, titles, legal documents, or stylistic emphasis. You only need a document with some text typed in Word to get started.

What You’ll Need

Microsoft Word (2010 or newer, including Microsoft 365)
A document with at least one word or sentence typed

Step-by-Step

Select the text. Click and drag your mouse over the word, phrase, or paragraph you want to format. If you want to apply it to the whole document, press Ctrl + A (Windows) or Command + A (Mac).
Open the Font dialog box. With the text selected, press Ctrl + D (Windows) or Command + D (Mac). Alternatively, click the small arrow icon in the bottom-right corner of the Font group on the Home tab of the ribbon.
Find the Small Caps checkbox. In the Font dialog box, look at the Effects section, which is in the lower-left area of the window. You will see a checkbox labeled Small caps.
Check the box. Click the checkbox so a checkmark appears. Notice that the preview box at the bottom of the dialog box updates to show how your selected text will look.
Apply the effect. Click the OK button at the bottom of the dialog box. Your selected text will now appear in small caps.

Common Mistakes

Not selecting text first. If you open the Font dialog box without selecting anything, the small caps effect will apply to the next character you type, not to existing text.
Typing text in all caps. Small caps works on lowercase letters. If you type your text in ALL CAPS first, Word cannot shrink them further, and the effect will look like regular capital letters. Always type normally (or in sentence case) before applying the effect.
Confusing small caps with the “Caps Lock” key. Caps Lock makes all letters the same size. Small caps makes the lowercase letters smaller than the capital letters, creating a distinct typographic style.
Using the wrong dialog box. The small caps option is not in the “Font” group on the ribbon directly. It is only accessible through the Font dialog box (Ctrl + D).

Tips

Use a keyboard shortcut. There is no default shortcut for small caps. However, you can create one by going to File > Options > Customize Ribbon (Windows) or Word > Preferences > Ribbon & Toolbar (Mac), then clicking “Keyboard Shortcuts: Customize.” Search for “SmallCaps” and assign a shortcut like Alt + S.
Apply to headings quickly. If you use small caps for headings, modify the Heading 1 or Heading 2 style instead. Right-click the style in the Home tab, choose Modify, then click Format > Font and check the Small caps box. Every heading using that style will then be in small caps automatically.
Combine with other effects. Small caps works well with bold or a different font color. You can apply those in the same Font dialog box or after applying small caps.
Check the preview. Before clicking OK, look at the preview box in the Font dialog box. It shows the exact result, so you can confirm the effect before committing.

Troubleshooting

The text does not change. Make sure you selected the text first. If you did, check that the text is not already in all caps. If it is, retype it in lowercase or select it, press Shift + F3 to cycle through capitalization options until it is in sentence case, then apply small caps again.
The effect disappears after saving and reopening. This can happen if you are viewing the document in a compatibility mode for an older Word version. Go to File > Info > Convert to update the file to the current format. Also, make sure you are not using a web-based viewer that does not render the effect; open the file in the desktop Word app.
Small caps is grayed out in the Font dialog box. This usually means the font you have selected does not support small caps. Try a different font, such as Calibri, Times New Roman, or Arial, which all support it. If you are using a custom or downloaded font, switch to a standard one.
Only part of the word is in small caps. This happens when you have manually changed the capitalization of some letters. For example, if you typed “McDonald” with a capital D, the D will stay full-size. Select the text, press Shift + F3 to set it to lowercase, then apply small caps again.
The shortcut Ctrl + D does not work. This can happen if another program or add-in has taken over that shortcut. Use the mouse instead: click the arrow in the Font group on the Home tab to open the dialog box.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I apply small caps to only one letter?

Yes. Select just that letter and follow the same steps. The selected letter will become a small capital, though it will look similar to a regular capital letter.

Does small caps affect the actual text or just the display?

It only affects the display and printing. The underlying text characters remain the same, so if you copy the text and paste it somewhere else without formatting, it will revert to normal capitalization.

Why does my text look like it is in all caps when I use small caps?

This happens when the font you are using has a very small difference between the capital and small capital sizes, or when the text is very short. Try a font with a more pronounced difference, like Garamond or Georgia, to see the effect more clearly.

Can I use small caps in Word Online (the free web version)?

No. The free web version of Word does not include the small caps formatting option. You need the desktop version of Word or the Word mobile app to access this feature.

How do I remove small caps from my text?

Select the text, open the Font dialog box (Ctrl + D), uncheck the Small caps box, and click OK. The text will return to its original capitalization.

Is small caps the same as “Caps Lock” or “Shift + F3”?

No. Caps Lock types everything in full-size capitals. Shift + F3 cycles between all caps, all lowercase, and sentence case. Small caps is a separate formatting effect that keeps the first letter large and shrinks the rest, which is not achievable with the keyboard alone.

General steps for current mainstream versions; menus can differ by device and version. See the disclaimer or report an error.

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