Table of contents page layout

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The table of contents is a map of your document. Design the table of contents so that it helps your readers:

to grasp the structure of the document at a glance

to find a particular topic as quickly as possible

The key elements of a table of contents are:

a heading that says that it’s the table of contents

a hierarchical list of all chapters within the document

page numbers of the beginning of each chapter

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Design tips

General recommendations:

Always start the table of contents on a right page.

Use the same basic page settings as for body pages (see Body page layout), such as page margins, headers, and footers. If you have a running header, have it say “Contents” on all pages of the table of contents. You can also omit a running header here because readers can easily identify the table of contents just by its appearance.

Use only one text column. A two-column layout may only be appropriate if you also use a multi-column layout within the document or if you need to fit the whole table of contents onto a single page.

If your document will be translated into foreign languages: Bear in mind that headings may be longer in other languages.

Name the table of contents just Contents. Avoid the verbose form Table of Contents.

Don’t include an entry for the table of contents within the table of contents.

Visualizing structure:

Clearly visualize the hierarchical structure of the document.

Use different font sizes, but avoid using more than two.

Use a font size and line spacing that allow a sufficient number of entries on one page. Readers should be able to grasp the document’s structure immediately. For the lowest-level entries, use the same font size as for body text.

Use space before and space after top-level headings to emphasize their importance.

Make top-level headings bold.

If you use a particular color for heading paragraph styles (see Heading paragraph styles), use this same color also in the table of contents.

Optionally, you can add a fine line above or below top-level headings to emphasize the beginning of a new section.

Make low-level headings gray or italic.

Chapter numbers:

If your headings include chapter numbers, also show these numbers in the table of contents. (However, in general it’s better not to use chapter numbers at all; see Heading paragraph styles.)

Guides:

If your text column is wide and the headings are short, the reader’s eyes must bridge a long distance between the end of a listed heading and the corresponding page number. Many readers slip into a wrong line then and end up on a wrong page. To prevent this from happening, consider adding a fine line or a series of dots as a visual guide.

Don’t start the dots immediately after the last letter of the heading, but first add about 2 or 3 space characters. Add the same amount of space or even a little bit more between the end of the guide and the page number.

Example

The following picture shows a table of contents where the given design tips have been implemented.

 

Formatting page numbers

Orthodox typographers use the same character style for all page numbers because this looks more uniform than using the character style of the heading.

With the reader in mind, however, it’s sometimes better to ignore this rule and to use the same style for the page number that you’ve used for the corresponding heading. This better visualizes the structure and minimizes the risk of slipping into the wrong line.

Compare the following variations:

on the left side is the version that uses identical character styles for all page numbers

on the right side is the version that uses different character styles for page numbers

 

You can add dots or thin lines as a visual guide between headings and page numbers. This is especially important if you use the same character style on all heading levels.

The following picture shows both versions of the table of contents with dots:

on the left side is the version that uses identical character styles for all page numbers

on the right side is the version that uses different character styles for page numbers

 

Options if a table of contents gets very long

If a table of contents gets so long that you’re afraid that it might overwhelm readers, only include headings down to a particular level. For example, include heading levels 1 and 2 in the table of contents, but don’t include heading levels 3 and 4.

This approach can be especially effective in reference manuals, where you often have a huge number of very short sections.

Important: If you don’t list all subchapters in the table of contents, make sure that users can easily find a particular subchapter anyway. For example, arrange subchapters that aren’t included in the table of contents alphabetically or numerically. Also make sure that you have a good alphabetical index (see Structuring: Alphabetical index).

As an option, you can also add a mini table of contents (mini TOC) at the beginning of each parent chapter (see Structuring: Table of contents). A mini TOC is a small, partial table of contents on the first page of a major chapter and lists all subchapters within this chapter.


Index page layout

Structuring: Standard sections in hardware user assistance

Structuring: Table of contents