To make a checklist in Word that you can tick, show the Developer tab, put the cursor at the start of the first line and choose Developer > Check Box Content Control, then copy the box to the start of every other line. In Word for the web, choose Home > Checklist or press Ctrl + comma. For a checklist you will print and tick by hand, use an empty box as the bullet instead.
This guide walks through each method, shows how to change the X to a tick, lock the list and share it with your team, and explains where a Word checklist stops being the right tool.
Which Method to Use
| You want | Use | Where it works |
|---|---|---|
| Boxes people tick on screen | Check Box Content Control | Word for Windows and Mac |
| A quick list in the browser | Home > Checklist | Word for the web |
| A checklist to print | An empty box as the bullet | Word for Windows and Mac |
How to Make a Checklist in Word, Step by Step
These steps are for Word for Microsoft 365 on Windows, and Microsoft's checklist guide says they also apply to Word 2024, 2021, 2019 and 2016. The Mac menu names are noted where they differ.
Show the Developer tab
On Windows, go to File > Options > Customize Ribbon and, under Main Tabs, tick Developer. On a Mac, open the Word menu, select Preferences, then Ribbon and Toolbar, tick Developer under Main Tabs and select Save. Microsoft's steps are in Show the Developer tab in Word.
Type the list
Write one step of the checklist on each line, starting each with a verb: "Create the user account", "Book the welcome meeting". For a team checklist, add the owner and the due date to the end of each line, or put the list in a table with a column for each.
Insert the check box
Put the cursor at the start of the first line and choose Developer > Check Box Content Control. On a Mac, choose Developer > Check Box. Click the box to tick it: Word puts an X in it, and a second click clears it.
Copy it to every line
Select the box, copy it, and paste it at the start of each of the other lines. Microsoft's guide uses the same copy and paste, and on a Mac suggests a hanging indent (Format > Paragraph) so wrapped lines line up with the text rather than the box.
Change the X to a tick
Select a box and choose Developer > Properties. Next to Checked symbol, select Change and pick a tick from a font such as Wingdings 2 or Segoe UI Symbol. Microsoft documents this for Word for Windows. Change the first box before you copy it, and every copy will use the tick.
Lock the list
To stop people editing the steps while they can still tick the boxes, select the whole list and choose Developer > Group > Group. To change the list later, select it and choose Group > Ungroup. For a whole document, Review > Restrict Editing lets you allow only one type of editing; Microsoft explains it in allowing changes to parts of a protected document. A protected document opens read-only in Word for the web.
Word for the Web: the Checklist Button
Word for the web has its own checklist. On the Home tab, in the Paragraph group, select Checklist, or press Ctrl + , (comma). Each new line gets a box, and you select the box to tick or untick it. The Word team's announcement adds that Ctrl + Alt + Enter marks the current item complete.
The Check Box Content Control is a desktop feature: Microsoft says adding a check box isn't possible in Word for the web, so build that kind of checklist in the desktop app.
A Printable Checklist You Can Reuse
For a list you will print and tick with a pen, make the bullet an empty box:
- Select the list.
- On the Home tab, select the arrow next to Bullets and choose Define New Bullet.
- Select Symbol (on a Mac, Bullet). If you don't see a box, change the font to Wingdings or Segoe UI Symbol and choose an empty box.
To start each run from a clean copy, save the finished checklist as a Word template (.dotx). Every document you create from it starts with the list and empty boxes, and the template stays as it was.
An Example Checklist Layout
Here is a new-starter IT checklist as a Word table. The Due column counts days from the start date, so the same template works for every new starter.
| Done | Task | Owner | Due |
|---|---|---|---|
| ☐ | Create the user account and email address | IT | Day −3 |
| ☐ | Order and set up the laptop | IT | Day −3 |
| ☐ | Add to payroll | HR | Day −1 |
| ☐ | Book the welcome meeting | Line manager | Day 1 |
| ☐ | Grant access to shared drives and tools | IT | Day 1 |
Share It and Assign the Steps
Save the document to OneDrive or SharePoint and share it. Several people can then work in it at once: Microsoft's guide to co-authoring says everyone needs edit permission and the file must be a .docx, and Word locks the paragraph each person is editing.
To give someone a step, select its line and choose Review > New Comment, type @ and their name, tick Assign to and post the comment. Microsoft says the person receives an email, and they resolve the task from the comment. Assigning needs a work or school account and a file in SharePoint or OneDrive for work or school.
For earlier copies of the checklist, open version history: in Word for Microsoft 365, select the file name at the top of the window, then Version history; in Word for the web, File > Version History. Microsoft says a personal account keeps the last 25 versions, and for work or school accounts the number depends on the library's settings.
Where a Word Checklist Runs Out
A Word checklist is right for a list you run once, for yourself, or as a printed sheet at a workstation. Teams usually hit the same limits when one checklist becomes a process that runs every week or for every new starter:
The five limits teams run into
- Every run is a copy. A template gives you a clean document, but someone has to create it, name it and send it round each time.
- An owner is a name in the text. Nobody is told when it is their turn or chased when a step is late, unless someone assigns a comment by hand.
- Any editor can tick any box. Grouping protects the wording, not the order: a step can be ticked before the one above it, or unticked later.
- There is no step-by-step record. Version history keeps earlier copies of the whole document; working out who ticked which box, and when, means comparing them.
- The answers are spread across documents. Last month's runs live in last month's files.
That is the point where checklist software earns its place. In CheckFlow a template starts a fresh checklist on schedule, every task has an owner and a due date, halts keep steps in order, approvals record the decision, and every run is kept with who did what and when. Generate with AI imports Word documents, so the checklist or SOP you already have becomes a template you can edit; our guide to converting your checklists shows how, and the free AI SOP generator drafts one from a sentence. For procedures written in Word, SOP software explains how the document and the checklist fit together.
Make a Checklist in Other Apps
The same checklist in the other tools your team may use: Excel, Google Sheets, Microsoft Teams and Lists, OneNote and Notion.
Sources
- Microsoft Support, "Make a checklist in Word"
- Microsoft Support, "Show the developer tab in Word"
- Microsoft Support, "Change checked boxes from an X to a checkmark"
- Microsoft Support, "Allow changes to parts of a protected Word document"
- Microsoft Support, "Differences between using a document in the browser and in Word"
- Microsoft 365 Insider Blog, "Checklists now available in Word for the web"
- Microsoft Support, "Insert a dynamic check box"
- Microsoft Support, "Save a Word document as a template"
- Microsoft Support, "Document collaboration and co-authoring"
- Microsoft Support, "Use @mention in comments to tag someone for feedback"
- Microsoft Support, "View previous versions of Office files"
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I insert a checkbox in Word?
Show the Developer tab (File > Options > Customize Ribbon, then tick Developer), put the cursor where the box should go and choose Developer > Check Box Content Control. On a Mac, choose Developer > Check Box. In Word for the web, use Home > Checklist instead.
How do I change the X to a tick in a Word checkbox?
Select the box, choose Developer > Properties, select Change next to Checked symbol and pick a tick from a font such as Wingdings 2 or Segoe UI Symbol. Do it on the first box before you copy it to the other lines.
Can I make a checklist in Word for the web?
Yes. On the Home tab, select Checklist or press Ctrl + comma, and select a box to tick it. You can't add Check Box Content Controls in Word for the web, so build that kind of checklist in the desktop app.
How do I make a printable checklist in Word?
Select the list, choose the arrow next to Bullets on the Home tab, then Define New Bullet > Symbol, and pick an empty box from Wingdings or Segoe UI Symbol. Save it as a Word template (.dotx) so every copy starts blank.
Can a team share a Word checklist?
Yes. Save it to OneDrive or SharePoint and share it, and people can edit it at the same time. To hand someone a step, add a comment, @mention them and tick Assign to; they get an email. If the checklist runs every week for several people, checklist software such as CheckFlow starts each run with the steps already assigned.
