How to remove background in MS Word: (know about text, images, signatures & more)

Have you ever dropped a photo into a Word document only to notice the busy background stealing all the attention? Or maybe you copied a chunk of text from a website and ended up with odd shading that refuses to disappear. Those little distractions can make an otherwise polished document look unprofessional.

The good news is that Microsoft Word has quietly built in several ways to clean things up. Whether you’re preparing a resume, editing a business proposal, or just adding a signature to a letter, you can remove everything from unwanted page colors to the background of an image—often in just a few clicks.

In this guide, I will walk through every major scenario: removing backgrounds behind photos and scanned signatures, stripping highlights from copied text, and even removing page-wide colors or watermarks. Each method is explained step by step for Windows & Mac; on mobile, use an external remover before inserting.

How to remove image backgrounds in Word

Drop a picture into a Word document and you get the whole thing—subject, backdrop, every last pixel. Sometimes that’s fine, but a busy background can distract from the real content of your page. 

Word works with common formats like JPEG, PNG and BMP, but its Remove Background tool does best when there’s a clear contrast between the object you want to keep and the area you’d like to erase. If the colours are too similar—say a grey product on a grey wall—you may need to spend an extra moment refining the edges.

Step-by-step guide for Word 2010 and later

1. Click the picture so the Picture Format tab appears along the ribbon.
2. Choose Remove Background. Word highlights the part it thinks should disappear in a magenta overlay.
3. Use Mark Areas to Keep or Mark Areas to Remove to fine-tune tricky areas, such as hair or shadows.
4. When you’re satisfied, select Keep Changes.
5. To preserve transparency, right-click the finished image, pick Save as Picture, and choose PNG as the file type.

How to remove the background in Word for a signature

If you’ve ever dropped a scanned signature onto a letter or form, you know the problem: a big white rectangle clings to it like paper glue. That little box can ruin an otherwise sharp layout. Cleaning it up not only looks better, but it also makes your signature reusable on any background.

Step-by-step guide for Word 2010 and later

1. Insert your signature image: go to Insert → Pictures → This Device and choose the scanned or photographed signature file.
2. Select the image so the Picture Format tab appears on the ribbon (Windows) or the Picture tab appears on Mac.
3. In the Adjust group, click Remove Background. Word highlights the areas it plans to delete with a magenta overlay.
4. Use Mark Areas to Keep to protect pen strokes and Mark Areas to Remove to clear any leftover paper or shadows.
5. Click Keep Changes to confirm the transparent background.
6. Right-click the cleaned signature, choose "Save as Picture," and select "PNG" to preserve transparency.

How to remove the background in Word using a phone

Editing on a phone is handy, but here’s the catch: the Word app for iPhone and Android doesn’t include the desktop “Remove Background” button. You can crop, resize, or tweak brightness, yet the full background-removal tool simply isn’t there. Microsoft lists this limitation on its mobile feature page.

Step-by-step guide for the Word app

1. Clean the image first: Open it in a background-removal app, and it all works well and can export a transparent PNG.
   

2. Drop it back into Word: Save that edited PNG to your camera roll or cloud storage. Then in the Word app, tap Insert → Pictures → From Photos (iOS) or Insert → Pictures → From Device (Android). The transparency stays intact.

How to remove background in Word 2016

MS Word 2016 makes background removal simple. Whether you’re cleaning up a product photo or creating a transparent logo, the built-in tool handles it without extra software. Just select the picture, remove what you don’t need, and save it as a PNG so the transparency stays intact.

Step-by-step guide for Word 2016 version

1. Open the document and click the picture you want to edit.
2. When the Picture Format tab appears on the ribbon, select Remove Background in the Adjust group.
3. Word highlights the areas it plans to delete in magenta.
4. Use Mark Areas to Keep or Mark Areas to Remove to fine-tune edges.
5. Choose Keep Changes to apply the edit.
6. Right-click the cleaned image, select Save as Picture, and choose PNG to preserve transparency.

How to remove the background in Word when copying text

Copying text from a website or another document can bring hidden surprises—odd colours, grey shading, or random highlights. They sneak in because the original source carries its own styles, and Word pastes those by default.

Step-by-step guide for Word 2010 and later

1. Highlight the messy text and click Home → Clear All Formatting (the small eraser icon in the Font group). One click strips out colours, fonts, and any invisible styling.
2. Want to keep the font but lose the colour? Select the text, then choose Home → Text Highlight Color → No Color. For deep shading, open Home → Paragraph → Shading → No Color.
3. When you paste from the web, choose Home → Paste → Paste Special → Unformatted Text (Windows) or Edit → Paste and Match Formatting on Mac. That keeps only plain text, so no extra styles hitch a ride.

How to remove background in Word 2007

Working in Word 2007 can feel a bit old-school, and that’s because it is. The version predates the modern Remove Background button, so you need a few different tricks to clear unwanted colours or shading. It’s still straightforward—you just take it step by step.

Step-by-step guide for text or page backgrounds

1. Highlight the text, then choose Home → Shading → No Color to drop any shading.
2. If someone highlighted the text with a marker effect, select it and click Home → Text Highlight Color → No Color.
3. To remove a page-wide background, open Page Layout → Page Color → No Color.
4. Got a watermark? Go to Page Layout → Watermark → Remove Watermark, and it’s gone.

Step-by-step guide for images with a background

Word 2007 can’t erase a photo’s background on its own. Open the image in an editor such as Pixelbin or Erase.bg, cut out the background there, and save it as a PNG to keep transparency. Insert that cleaned PNG back into your Word document. 

How to remove the background in a Word template

Word templates often come with built-in flair—coloured pages, subtle patterns, or a watermark tucked into the header. They look nice for the original design, but if you’re re-using that template for a different project, those extras can feel out of place. Clearing them out is quick once you know where to click.

Step-by-step guide to clean or edit a template background:

1. Open the template file (.dotx or .dotm) just like you would a normal Word document.
2. On the ribbon, go to Design → Page Color → No Color to remove any full-page tint or gradient.
3. If there’s a watermark, choose Design → Watermark → Remove Watermark, and it disappears instantly.
4. Spot extra shapes or logos hiding in a header or footer? Double-click that area, select the object, and press Delete.
5. Save the file—ideally with a new name—so the original template stays intact for future projects.

Best online tools to remove background from an image

A few months ago, I was preparing a batch of product shots for a client and hit a wall. Word’s built-in background remover handled simple logos well enough, but the moment I tried a photo with wind-tossed hair and uneven lighting, the results looked rough and amateurish.

That sent me searching for better options—tools that could pull a subject cleanly out of the chaos without hours of manual editing. Since then, I’ve tested many services, from quick online apps to full creative suites.

Four of them keep earning a spot in my toolkit because each tackles to be one of the best apps for background removal a little differently. Whether you need a one-click fix before a meeting or fine control for a design project, one of these will fit the job.

Pixelbin AI background remover

Pixelbin’s background remover is designed for people who want quick, high-quality cut-outs without learning complex software. You open the website, drag in your photo, and the AI immediately separates the subject from its surroundings. There’s no signup or installation, so it works anywhere—laptop, tablet, or phone.

Because it’s entirely browser-based, you can process several images at once and preview changes instantly. Transparent PNG exports maintain clean edges, making it a great choice for online stores, presentations, or social posts where clean backgrounds are a must.

Why did I like the tool?

• One-click AI background removal.
• Batch uploads with high-resolution output.
• Transparent PNG export for e-commerce and design.
• Simple edge-adjustment sliders for precision.

Erase.bg

Erase.bg focuses on effortless background cleanup for everyday users. Upload a picture and within seconds, the service delivers a clear background PNG. It’s when you need a polished image but don’t want to install or learn new software.

The site works in any modern browser and supports popular file types like JPG, PNG, and WebP. It also lets you replace the removed background with a solid colour or a different image, which is handy for quick marketing visuals or profile updates.

Why did I like the tool?

• Free, no-signup background removal.
• Works smoothly on desktop and mobile.
• Background replacement with custom images or colours.
• Maintains original image resolution.

Adobe Photoshop

Adobe Photoshop remains the industry standard for detailed background work. Its AI-powered “Select Subject” tool quickly identifies the main object, while “Refine Edge” gives control around fine hair, semi-transparent fabrics, or tricky shadows.

Layer-based editing means every change is reusable. Whether you need a transparent PNG for the web or a high-resolution print file, Photoshop’s export options handle it all while keeping the quality intact.

Why did I like the tool?

• Advanced AI selection with manual masking.
• Non-destructive, layer-based workflow.
• Clean transparent PNG or layered PSD export.
• Fine-edge refinement for complex details.

Adobe Illustrator

Illustrator works best when you need vector images with clear and crisp edges. Using the Image Trace tool, you can convert a raster image into vector paths that you can easily edit, then remove or reshape the background accurately.

Because vectors scale without losing sharpness, your final artwork stays clean at any size, from tiny icons to large banners. Integration with other Adobe apps makes it easy to move assets into Photoshop or InDesign once the background is gone.

Why did I like the tool?

• Image Trace converts photos to editable vectors.
• Exact background removal or reshaping.
• Infinite scalability with no pixelation.
• Transparent SVG, PDF, or AI export options. 

Final thoughts

When I first discovered Word’s background-removal tool, I expected a clunky add-on. It surprised me. With a few clicks, a cluttered photo of a handmade card turned into a clean, transparent PNG—good enough to drop straight into a presentation.

That said, Word isn’t magic. Older versions and Word Online skip some features, and tricky edges—like hair or smoke—still need patience. I always keep an untouched copy of the file, then export as PNG to protect sharpness and transparency.

For projects that demand perfect edges, I’ll finish the job in a specialist app such as Pixelbin or Photoshop. Word handles the everyday work; the pros take it the rest of the way.