Microsoft Word’s AutoCorrect tool saves you a lot of time by correcting common typos and spelling errors, like turning “acheiving” into “achieving”. Handily, it also turns shorthand keys into symbols, like converting (c) into ©. Alongside the default options, you can also add your own entries.

Why Add Custom AutoCorrect Entries?

Being able to add custom AutoCorrect entries means you can truly personalize your Microsoft Word experience and save even more time. Here are some examples of the different ways I use AutoCorrect to increase my typing efficiency:

How to Add AutoCorrect Entries

Adding entries to the AutoCorrect list is a straightforward process.

First, click “File” in the top-left corner of your Word window, and then click “Options.” Alternatively, to save time, use theMicrosoft Word keyboard shortcutAlt > F > T.

Then, click “Proofing” in the left-hand menu of the Word Options window.

The Proofing tab in the Word Options window.

Next, click “AutoCorrect Options.”

Now, open the “AutoCorrect” tab to see the default AutoCorrect list at the bottom of the dialog box. Above this list, you can see two empty text fields:

The AutoCorrect Options button in the Word Options window.

After typing each entry, click “Add.”

Before you close the AutoCorrect dialog box, make sure “Replace Text As You Type” is checked. Otherwise, AutoCorrect won’t work as expected.

Word’s AutoCorrect dialog box, with ‘HTG’ typed into the Replace field, ‘How-To Geek’ typed into the With field, and the Add button highlighted.

When you’ve added all your entries, click “OK” twice to close the AutoCorrect and Word Options dialog boxes.

Now, in your Word document, type one of the entries you added to the Replace field in the previous step, and press Space, Tab, or Enter. In my case, “HTG” automatically changes to “How-To Geek.”

An AutoCorrect entry in Word is selected, and the Delete button is highlighted.

To remove an AutoCorrect entry, head back to the AutoCorrect tab of the AutoCorrect Options dialog box, select the entry, and click “Delete.”

Bonus Tip: Formatting AutoCorrect Entries

When organizing your AutoCorrect entries, you can go one step further by adding formatted text to the list. This saves you from having to format the text manually each time.

To do this, first, type and format the replacement text (in other words, the text that goes into the With field in the AutoCorrect dialog box) in your Word document’s canvas. In my example, each time I type “HTG,” I want the words “How-To Geek” to be bold.

The words ‘How-To Geek’ in Microsoft Word with bold formatting applied.

Then, select the text, being careful not to select any additional spaces before or after the words, and press Ctrl+C.

Now, press Alt > F > T to open the Word Options dialog box, and click “Proofing” in the left-hand menu.

The words ‘How-To Geek’ are in the With field of Microsoft Word’s AutoCorrect dialog box.

You’ll notice that, usefully, the text you copied has already been added to the With field in the AutoCorrect tab of the dialog box.

Next, check the “Formatted Text” radio button to see the text in the With field adopt the formatting you just applied. Then, add the trigger in the Replace field, select “Add,” and click “OK.”

The Formatted Text radio button is checked in Microsoft Word’s AutoCorrect dialog box, and the words ‘How-To Geek’ are displayed in bold.

From this point onward, each time you type your trigger and press Space, Tab, or Enter, Word will automatically correct the text to your formatted replacement.

The formatting you apply doesn’t have to be bold. For example, you could apply a color or highlight, or force Word to underline or italicize your text.

Things to Note When Using AutoCorrect

Before you go ahead and add entries to your AutoCorrect list, here are some final points you should note:

Using the AutoCorrect tool isn’t the only way tospeed up your workflow in Microsoft Word. For example, you couldcustomize the Quick Access Toolbar, use the program’sFind And Replace tool, oralter capitalization without deleting your work.