Dec 6, 2022

Table of Contents page numbers wrong

They are not technically wrong, but there is no way that I have found to make them right.

SITUATION:

I have an 86 page document. The TOC itself is about 5 pages long when I force it to update.

PROBLEM:

I don't need every single heading level in the TOC, so I delete by hand some of the rows.

This then alters the page number of the entire document, making all of the page numbers off by more and more as the document goes on.

QUESTION:

Do I really have to update every single page number in the TOC by hand to make them accurate or can I dictate which heading levels are included in the TOC, and omit some?

Details

Docs,Mac OS,Business

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Recommended Answer

Dec 7, 2022

Hi, Dyani,

Platinum Product Expert Gill S recommended this

Jo S.

Diamond Product Expert

I've been volunteering in the help forums since 2013. I do NOT work for Google.

Dec 7, 2022

Yes, I'm afraid it's a bit of a tradeoff. You'll have to determine which has the lowest pain point. Alternatively, you could wait until you are finished with your document to make those heading changes, as then the outline and format updating won't be critical factors.

Dyani Wood

Original Poster

Dec 8, 2022

After considering which way would be least painful, I have another question. Is there an easy way to apply the heading styling, then break that "link" and leave the text styled but not a true heading anymore? Trying to think of an easy way to apply the formatting to any heading without having to fiddle with the formatting by hand every single time. That was the benefit of using headings after all.

I'm thinking the best compromise is to use headings, then break them all at the very last step. But that's a horrible wrench in the workflow when it's a working document that will be revised in the future.

Jo S.

Diamond Product Expert

I've been volunteering in the help forums since 2013. I do NOT work for Google.

Dec 8, 2022

Hi, Dyani,

There isn't any way to break the link for a heading. I've been trying to think of other workarounds for you. You could try using the "Title" heading for the ones you want to hide from the TOC, as "Titles" shouldn't show there. However, they would then have the same formatting as another heading by a different name, which would cause a problem if you want to apply a style globally in your document. But what if you made those "Title" headings one-half point size smaller than their compatriots? It's unlikely that anyone reading the document would detect this difference, but it would solve the problem without creating a new one.

What do you think? Might that work?