How Can I Get What I Print to Fit on the Page?

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Make your document fit onto one page for printing.

You may need to adjust a text document or spreadsheet if you are faced with a restriction on the number of pages you can have on an assignment or presentation -- or perhaps you type a document and realize it is just two lines over one page. Instead of wasting paper, you can make the document fit all on one page. You can also make an Excel spreadsheet fit one page to keep all the information together.

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Microsoft Word

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Step 1

Select your entire document by highlighting the document or going to "Edit," "Select" and "Select All."

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Step 2

Change the font size by a point or two. If you typed your document in 12 point, try changing it to 10 or 11.

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Step 3

Try different fonts if your paper is only over one page by a line or two.

Step 4

Adjust your margins. One inch margins on the sides, top and bottom are standard on most documents. If you change them to .75 around the paper, that will help condense the document.

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Step 5

Go to "Print Preview" and use the "Shrink to Fit" option in Word if you don't want to make the changes manually. "Shrink to Fit" changes the font size and margins to make the document fit on one page. In Microsoft Word 2007 and 2010, go to "Print," "Print Preview" and then "Shrink to Fit" under the "Preview" option.

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Step 6

Print multiple pages on one sheet by going to "File," "Print" and "Zoom." Under the "Pages per sheet" box on the "Zoom" page, choose the number of pages you want to print on one sheet. Microsoft Word shrinks the pages to fit.

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Excel

Step 1

Click "Page Layout" from the menu options at the top of your Excel spreadsheet.

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Step 2

Change the number in the "Height" box in the "Scale to Fit" group to one page.

Step 3

Switch the number in the "Width" box in the "Scale to Fit" group to one page.

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Step 4

Check the number in the "Scale" box in the "Scale to Fit" box. This number represents the percentage of the original size of your document that will print. Excel shrinks your spreadsheet in order to make it fit on one page. If the scale percentage is fairly low, the spreadsheet may be difficult to read.

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Step 5

Change your page orientation to "landscape" rather than "portrait" if you have a number of columns, but not as many rows. You can change the page orientation under "Page Setup," "Orientation" and then "Landscape."

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