The fastest way to disable links in Word

To disable a single link in Word, right-click on it and select Remove Hyperlink. The text stays in your document, but it stops being a clickable link. If you want to disable all links at once, hold Ctrl+A to select everything, then right-click and choose Remove Hyperlink again — Word will remove every link in the document in one action.

You can also disable links by pressing Ctrl+Shift+F9, which removes all field codes (including hyperlinks) from your entire document at once. This method works the same way across Windows and Mac versions of Word.

Key Takeaways

  • Right-click any link and select Remove Hyperlink to turn off a single link while keeping the text.
  • Select all text with Ctrl+A, then right-click and choose Remove Hyperlink to disable every link in the document at once.
  • Pressing Ctrl+Shift+F9 removes all hyperlinks and other field codes from your document instantly.
  • Disabling links does not delete the text — it only removes the clickable functionality and the blue underline formatting.

Removing links one at a time

If you only need to turn off a few links, the right-click method is the most straightforward. Click on the link you want to disable, then right-click it. A menu will appear with several options. Look for Remove Hyperlink near the bottom of the menu and click it.

The text of the link remains in your document exactly as it was — Word only removes the hyperlink code underneath. The blue color and underline formatting will disappear, and clicking the text will no longer open a webpage or file.

Disabling all links at once

To remove every link in your document in one step, first select all the text. Press Ctrl+A on Windows or Cmd+A on Mac. Your entire document will highlight in blue.

With everything selected, right-click anywhere in the document and choose Remove Hyperlink from the menu. Word will remove all hyperlinks at once, leaving all your text intact. This method is much faster than removing links individually if your document contains dozens of them.

Using the keyboard shortcut for links and fields

The keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Shift+F9 removes all field codes from your document, which includes hyperlinks. Field codes are the hidden instructions Word uses to create dynamic elements like links, page numbers, and table of contents entries.

Press Ctrl+Shift+F9 and Word will instantly convert all fields — including every hyperlink — into plain text. This is the fastest method if you want to strip out all links without touching anything else. Be aware that this also removes other field codes, so use it only if you do not need those dynamic elements.

Preventing Word from creating links automatically

Word automatically turns web addresses and email addresses into clickable links as you type. If you want to stop this behavior, go to File > Options > Proofing > AutoCorrect Options. Click the AutoFormat As You Type tab.

Uncheck the box next to Internet and network paths with hyperlinks. From that point forward, Word will not automatically convert URLs and email addresses into links as you type. You can still create links manually if you need them — this setting only stops the automatic behavior.

Disabling links in a template or document you reuse

If you use a Word template that contains links you do not want, you can remove them before saving the template. Open the template file, select all text with Ctrl+A, right-click, and choose Remove Hyperlink. Save the file, and the template will no longer contain any links.

You can also turn off automatic link creation in templates by adjusting the AutoCorrect settings described above. This prevents Word from creating new links when you use the template in the future, even if someone pastes a URL into the document.

What happens to the text when you remove a link

Removing a hyperlink does not delete or change the text itself. If your link says "Visit our website," the words "Visit our website" stay in your document exactly as they appear. Only the clickable functionality and the hyperlink formatting (usually blue text and an underline) disappear.

If you want to remove both the link and the text, you will need to delete the text manually by selecting it and pressing Delete. But in most cases, you want to keep the text and only remove the link — which is what Remove Hyperlink does.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I disable links without removing the blue color and underline?

No. When you remove a hyperlink in Word, the blue color and underline disappear automatically because they are part of the hyperlink formatting. If you want to keep text blue and underlined but not clickable, you would need to manually format the text as blue and underlined after removing the link.

Does removing a link affect the rest of my document?

No. Removing links only affects the links themselves. Your text, formatting, images, and everything else in the document stays exactly the same. You can remove all links without changing anything else.

What if I accidentally remove a link I needed?

Press Ctrl+Z immediately to undo the removal. Word will restore the link. You can undo multiple actions in a row if you removed several links by mistake.

Will disabling links prevent people from clicking them when I share the document?

Yes. Once you remove a hyperlink, no one who opens the document will be able to click it. The text will be plain text with no clickable functionality.

Can I disable links in a PDF I created from Word?

No. Once you convert a Word document to PDF, you cannot edit it in Word anymore. You would need to remove the links from the Word document before converting it to PDF. After that, the PDF will not contain any clickable links.