How to Lock an Image in Microsoft Word

Pictures added to Microsoft Word automatically move as you add or remove text. Unfortunately, the constant movement of images can change the layout of the Word file. To deal with this problem, Microsoft Word lets you lock images to a fixed position.

Locking the image ensures that it stays in a fixed position regardless of other changes to the Word document. The various ways to do this are:

Lock an Image Using Restrict Editing in Microsoft Word

The restriction editing feature allows users to protect an image using a password. However, using this feature also locks other content of the document. Therefore, this method is only recommended when the Word document is shared with external parties and you do not want any changes. Here’s how it works:

Stage 1: Start Microsoft Word on your computer.

Step 2: On the Ribbon tab, select Add.

Stage 3: Select Pictures and choose Insert Pictures from your PC, online or stock images.

Step 4: Once your image is in the document, click the Review tab.

Step 5: Select Protect, then Restrict Editing. Doing so starts a side panel in the document.

Step 6: From the side panel, check one or all of the following boxes

• Formatting restrictions to limit format style changes in the document.
• Editing restrictions to allow or disallow certain types of editing in the document.

Step 7: Select Yes, Start Enforce Protection at the bottom of the menu to start a dialog box.

Step 8: In the dialog box, enter a password for the document and select OK to save your changes.

Lock an Image Using the Watermark Feature in Microsoft Word

If you have an image set as your background in Word, this option may be preferable as it keeps the image in a fixed position. Here’s how it works:

Stage 1: Start Microsoft Word on your computer.

Step 2: Select Design on the Ribbon.

Stage 3: Select Watermark from the available options.

Step 4: Select Custom Watermark.

Step 5: In the next dialog, select Image Watermark and then click Select Image.

Step 6: From the new popup, select Add Image from your preferred source (File, Bing or OneDrive).

Note: The path of the option you choose will be recorded by the Watermark feature.

Step 7: Select OK to save the changes; the image should be projected as a locked background in your document.

Lock an Image Using the Location Link Tool in Microsoft Word

The Image Link tool ensures that the position of the image in a Word document remains fixed. Here’s how it works:

Stage 1: Start Microsoft Word on your computer.

Step 2: On the Ribbon tab, select Add.

Stage 3: Select Pictures and choose Insert Pictures from your PC, online or stock images.

Step 4: Once your image is in the document, right-click on it to reveal a menu.

Step 5: Select Wrap Text and choose any of the text wrap styles except In Line With Text, which is the default setting for all inserted images.

Step 6: Select the image and a semicircle should appear.

Step 7: To keep your image stable, select the semicircle and check the circle next to Pin Position on Page.

Locking an Image Using the Image Content Control Function of the Developer Tab in Microsoft Word

The Developer tab is a feature available in Microsoft Word 2010, 2013, 2016 and 2019. Also available in Word for Microsoft 365. Here’s how to access the image content control function to lock an image:

Stage 1: Start Microsoft Word on your computer.

Step 2: Move your mouse over the Ribbon and right-click.

Stage 3: Click Customize Ribbon to launch a dialog.

Step 4: In the menu labeled Main Tabs, scroll down and click the checkbox next to Developer to add it to your Word Ribbon.

Step 5: Click OK to close the dialog box.

Step 6: Now click on the Developer Tab on your Word Ribbon.

Note: Make sure to select the image to lock before selecting the Developer Tab.

Step 7: In the Control Group, select Image Content Control (represented by an image icon) and your image should be locked.

Making Pictures the Same Size in Microsoft Word

You can keep your document organized by locking the images in your Microsoft Word document. Another way to organize images in your Word document is to format all images to have the same size.