How to Strikethrough in Word: 3 Easy Methods

Strikethrough in Word is the cleanest way to mark text as edited, completed, or superseded without losing the original wording — and once you know the shortcut, it takes less than a second to apply.

In this guide, you’ll learn three reliable ways to add strikethrough in Microsoft Word — using the ribbon, the keyboard shortcut, and the Font dialog box — plus how to remove it and fix the most common issues. If you’re new to Word formatting, you may also want to brush up on the Microsoft Word keyboard shortcuts cheat sheet first.

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What Is Strikethrough in Word?

Strikethrough is a character-level formatting option that draws a horizontal line through selected text while leaving the words readable. Unlike deleting, it preserves the original content — useful when you need a visible record of what was changed.

It’s the right tool for:

• Showing revisions during editing or peer review
• Crossing off completed items on a checklist
• Comparing old wording against new without deleting either
• Marking text for discussion in collaborative documents

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How to Strikethrough in Word: Step-by-Step

There are three reliable ways to apply strikethrough in Word, and each one suits a different workflow. The ribbon method is the most visual, the keyboard shortcut is the fastest, and the Font dialog gives you access to double strikethrough as well.

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Method 1: How to Strikethrough in Word Using the Ribbon

This is the most beginner-friendly approach and works identically across every modern version of Word — Microsoft 365, Word 2021, Word 2019, and Word Online.

Steps:

1. Select the text you want to cross out
2. Go to the Home tab on the ribbon
3. Locate the Font group
4. Click the Strikethrough button — the “ab” icon with a line through it

👉 The selected text now appears with a single horizontal line through the centre, and the formatting stays applied until you toggle it off.

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Method 2: How to Strikethrough in Word Using the Keyboard Shortcut

If you format text frequently, the keyboard shortcut is the fastest route. Word doesn’t ship with a dedicated single-key shortcut for strikethrough — instead, it uses the ribbon’s KeyTips sequence.

Steps:

1. Select the text you want to strike through
2. Press Alt + H
3. Then press 4

👉 The shortcut triggers the same Strikethrough command as the ribbon button, but without breaking your hand position on the keyboard.

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Method 3: How to Strikethrough in Word Using the Font Dialog Box

The Font dialog box unlocks two options the ribbon doesn’t show — single strikethrough and double strikethrough — and lets you combine them with other character effects in one step.

Steps:

1. Select your text
2. Press Ctrl + D to open the Font dialog box
3. Under Effects, tick either Strikethrough or Double strikethrough
4. Click OK

👉 Double strikethrough is useful when you need to distinguish between two stages of revision — a single line for first-pass edits, a double line for final removals.

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Which Method Should You Use?

Method	Best For	Speed
Ribbon button	Beginners and occasional use	Medium
Keyboard shortcut (Alt H 4)	Frequent editing and revision work	Fastest
Font dialog (Ctrl + D)	Double strikethrough or combined effects	Slowest

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Common Problems When Using Strikethrough in Word

The strikethrough button is greyed out

This means no text is selected. Highlight the text first, then click the button — the ribbon icon only activates when there’s a valid selection to format.

The Alt H 4 shortcut doesn’t work

Press the keys in sequence, not together — tap Alt, then H, then 4. If KeyTips don’t appear when you press Alt, your ribbon may be customised; reset it via File → Options → Customize Ribbon → Reset.

Can’t find the strikethrough button on the ribbon

It lives in the Font group on the Home tab, between the underline and subscript buttons. If your Word window is narrow, the Font group collapses — widen the window or click the small Font group expander arrow.

Strikethrough won’t remove from pasted text

Text pasted from another document sometimes carries hidden formatting. Select the text and press Ctrl + Spacebar to clear all character formatting at once, then reapply only what you need.

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Pro Tips

• Strikethrough is a toggle — clicking it again on already-formatted text removes the line cleanly
• Add Strikethrough to the Quick Access Toolbar to cut the shortcut down to a single Alt + number press
• For tracked-change workflows where edits need a full audit trail, use Track Changes instead — strikethrough is for visual marking, not version control
• Combine strikethrough with a coloured font to make revisions stand out at a glance — for the cleanest result, customise the font colour first using the guide on how to change background colour in Word

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FAQs

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Conclusion

Strikethrough in Word is one of those small formatting tools that pays for itself the moment you learn the shortcut — three keys and a selection is all it takes to mark revisions, track completed work, or compare wording without losing any of the original text.

Pick the method that matches how you work — the ribbon for clarity, Alt + H + 4 for speed, or the Font dialog for double strikethrough — and pair it with how to remove formatting marks in Word to keep your document clean as you edit.

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Related Tutorials

• Microsoft Word Keyboard Shortcuts Cheat Sheet
• How to Justify Text in Word
• How to Remove Formatting Marks in Word