Create an InDesign Table of Contents

An InDesign Table of Contents can not be created with the flick of a switch. Planning is required while creating the document as is the systematic use of Paragraph Styles. This tutorial will step through everything needed to create and beautifully format a Table of Contents in InDesign.
Patreon: / michaelbullo
TIMELINE
0:00 - Introduction
0:44 - Examination of document used in this example
2:24 - Review of Sections and page numbers
3:35 - Building a Table of Contents (TOC) from scratch
8:50 - Formatting TOC
10:54 - Right aligning TOC numbers
12:41 - Adding dots between TOC entries and page numbers
16:16 - Updating TOC after editing document
17:26 - Creating PDF Bookmarks and how to use in Acrobat
DOWNLOADS (ZIP files)
www.dropbox.com/s/snvtl8p4n9j...
Above ZIP file contains...
- final.indd: InDesign file with completed Table of Contents
- start.indd: InDesign file without Table of Contents
- table-of-contents.pdf: PDF of document containing Table of Contents and Bookmarks
The InDesign files in the above download were created using InDesign CC 2019. If you have an earlier version of InDesign or are having trouble opening these files, you may like to try the IDML versions of the files contained in this ZIP file...
www.dropbox.com/s/b6az7n23v9v...

[@gregupton6188]

Nobody anywhere, not even Adobe, have been able to clearly and properly explain how to build and format a table of contents in Indesign. UNTIL THIS VIDEO!! Thank you. Very clearly explained, and at last I have finally been able to create a table of contents in Indesign and formatted to look slick and professional.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Greg. That's very kind of you to say. Great to hear you've created an awesome design. Cheers.

[@mytinylagunakitchen]

THANK YOU SO MUCH for this tutorial! Hands down the best one of found online. Thank you for including the levels & making this SO simple/easy to follow.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you. Good to hear the different levels were helpful. Best of luck with all your designs.

[@joannleger]

This video is absolutely perfect. Super clear, no unnecessary fluff, straight to the point. And after four years still applies. Thank you, Michael Bullo!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Joann. That's very nice of you to say. Best of luck with all those InDesign docs.

[@alexdarcy413]

There are few tutorials available on TOC, but this is one of the clearest and simple. Thank you! you got one more subscriber :)

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Alex. I appreciate the feedback and the sub. Cheers.

[@DanielNevesBL]

This video is pure perfection. Thank you so so much, Michael. I was having a lot of trouble doing the TOC and now I think I can do it.

[@MichaelBullo]

Hey that's great to hear mate. Thank you. If you get stuck with anything let me know.

[@aathirapillai2999]

This is one of the most comprehensive and easy demonstrations. will save it for an eternity!! Thank you Michael its brilliant

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you so much. Very kind of you to say. Hope it proves useful.

[@marcokothe480]

I've been having a hard time to figure this out, but you saved my day! Thank you so much, great tutorial!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thanks Marco.

[@lisasizemore9928]

I've been reading and researching every place I know to learn how to generate an ID TOC. You are the BEST. Thank you, thank you!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Lisa. Happy to hear this helped. There certainly are a lot of elements to know when building a TOC. Cheers.

[@brucekolinski8824]

Mr. Bullo - you Sir are an excellent instructor. Thank you so much. Clear, concise, yet thorough. Very helpful.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Bruce. I appreciate your detailed comment and I'm happy to hear it helped. Best of luck with all your designs.

[@natalia-viteri-art]

Excellent video that goes in depth about all the right things in a friendly, concise manner. Thank you!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you very much Natalia

[@timlizaverbunt-littlefield1134]

I've watched many InDesign tutorials, and this one is EXACTLY what I needed. Thanks Michael, keep doing what you do! 🙏

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you very much for the support. I really appreciate it. Best of luck with your InDesign projects.

[@dougieladd]

This is the best description of how to create a TOC in InDesign... Awesome work mate. Thanks. Very clearly taught.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thanks mate. Hope it proves useful. Cheers.

[@sarak3995]

probably the best tutorial i've come across for InDesign TOC - well done!!! Thank you so much

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you. That's very kind of you to say.

[@teenstrucksvideos]

This is EXACTLY what I needed! Logically put together, you can tell Michael thought through this tutorial step-by-step. I'm subscribing now.

[@MichaelBullo]

That's great to hear this helped. Thank you for appreciating the work put into this video and welcome to the channel.

[@mauriciocebada2863]

Yours is the BEST video out of 10 I've seen already, I love that you made it logical and perfectly detail for newbies like me.

[@MichaelBullo]

I genuinely appreciate that feedback. Thank you and best of luck with those long documents.

[@JimCooperVO]

By far the best step by step video on creating a TOC in inDesign.

[@MichaelBullo]

Now that's a compliment. Thank you and best of luck with your InDesign documents.

[@keyos27]

This is such a gem. Thank you so much for all the informative tips, especially how to control the dots.
*Those who don't see the bookmarks in pdf, make sure to save as PDF (interactive) Not (Print).

[@MichaelBullo]

Thanks mate. I appreciate the feedback. Good call on how best to export out a PDF. Cheers.

[@JKYLEM1000]

By far the best and most up-to-date tutorial for the table of contents feature. Thank you Sir!

[@MichaelBullo]

Much appreciated. Cheers.

[@gabrielbenitez8194]

And also the most complete and effective.

[@acmtsing]

the most detailed TOC tutorial, thanks, Michael.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thanks for that. Hope it helps.

[@chenchrissie1266]

This video should be called EVERYTHING you need yo know about TOC! thorough and detailed! Great for my first TOC of ID. Many thanks!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you so much. Best of luck with your designs.

[@NatashaVelisha]

Wonderful teaching! Just lovely. Clearly spoken, clearly demonstrated, clearly explained, clearly presented. Five Stars!!!

[@MichaelBullo]

Now that's a comment. Thank you very much and have a great day.

[@iainlindsay3032]

You are the only person who has been able to explain TOC's to me! THANK YOU!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thanks mate. Best of luck with all those long documents.

[@rebfm1494]

Couldn't for the life of me remember how to do this, helped so much thank you! Loved the way you explained it, clear and concise!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you. I'm happy to hear this helped you out.

[@Chillybat]

One of the most informative tutorials I've seen so far on InDesign. Keep up the levels!

[@MichaelBullo]

That's very kind of you to say. Thank you.

[@thenoilkitchen]

Thank you so much! Very good tutorial. I appreciate you including the TOC level 2 part.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you. Much appreciated.

[@nikkicanale2013]

THANK YOU! I've been trying to figure out how to do this for ages. This is the best explanation I've found!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Nikki. I appreciate that.

[@alhassanjamal6303]

I loved the way you simplified the explanation of creating a table of contents ... thanks a zillion for this beneficial tutorial!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you for the comment. That's very kind of you.

[@jeanettemitchell6357]

Perfect tutorial! I've tried several others, but couldn't follow them. Your tutorial is very easy to follow and understand. You explain things very well. I was about to give up when I found yours. Thanks so much! Your an excellent teacher.

[@MichaelBullo]

Hi Jeanette. Thank you for those very kind words. Much appreciated.

[@BENJCOTE]

Best TOC damn tutorial I watched on this subject and believe me I have seen a few. One of my other jobs beside graphic design, is writing interactive pdf help manuals. Michael delivers this tutorial at the right pace, right tone of voice, and with great explanations of what goes on, the tab thingy in particular. Of course it doesn't hurt that he has Aussie accent either ...LOL👍

[@MichaelBullo]

Thanks mate. I really appreciate you taking the time to write this endorsement. Good to hear the "tab thingy" now makes sense ;)

[@gisele-grenier]

I struggled for hours doing this until I landed on your video. Your instructions are crystal clear and was able to follow along to create my own styled toc. Thank you! new subscriber here!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Gisele. Very kind of you to say. Best of luck with all those beautifully structured future long documents ;)

[@mohonaakhi4915]

This is my life saving tut. I have seen many tut for this kind if issue even talk my older brother about it but there no clean idea about making such kind of help. I loved this so so so so much! You got my happy subscribe

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you so much. That's very kind of you to say. Welcome to the channel.

[@martamarczewska9486]

Love this tutorial, today I have test on Indesign and you're a life saver!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you and best of luck with the test.

[@pmtvs]

Thanks Michael, if I watch it 3 times, I might even remember it!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thanks mate. Might I recommend you watch it 4 times ;)

[@mitch625]

Very helpful and nicely put together. Rear a few articles and it was going straight over me, everything perfect after watching this.

[@MichaelBullo]

Hey thank you. Great to hear this helped you out. Happy designing :)

[@markfindlater4197]

Outstanding. Clear & concise!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Mark. I wish you well with your long documents.

[@hosunkang6704]

That’s exactly what I want to know.
Thank you very much.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thanks Hosun. Much appreciated.

[@priscillabandy3452]

This was my 4th ToC video and I wish I had found it first! Thank you this was so perfect!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Priscilla. That's very kind of you to say. Happy InDesigning :)

[@Aravindselvaraj]

Thank you so much! I tried and had several errors, with this great tutorial, I could easily find a solution. Kudos. 😀

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you very much. That's great to hear this helped you out.

[@JaZyLY]

Finally a practical guide !! Great tutorial Thank you 😊

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you. I appreciate that and I hope it helps.

[@sasi7672]

Really good tutorial. Clear and well explained... you are a natural teacher. Great stuff :-)

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you. I really appreciate that.

[@LillianKZ123]

I've watched this more times than I care to say. I use InDesign sporatically and have retrain myself. This video is one of my goto's

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Lillian. Good to hear this has helped you out a few times. Have a great day :)

[@zebracreative52]

You are AWESOME! thanks for the thorough walk-through, all worked

[@MichaelBullo]

Fantastic and thank you. Congrats on the new TOC.

[@peterkabiru5144]

Best tutorial on working on TOC with indesign

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Peter

[@rafiq917]

Thank you, sir. It's really a top-class tutorial.

[@MichaelBullo]

Cheers Rafiqul

[@valeriebourdain]

This is an outstanding tutorial...Thank you so much for all the help!

[@MichaelBullo]

That's very kind of you to say Valerie. Thank you and best of luck with all those InDesign docs.

[@jameshagger6182]

Hi Michael,
Thanks for the tutorial. It's the clearest and most succinctly presented I have seen after trawling the internet for days! Brilliant.
Cheers,
James

[@MichaelBullo]

Hi James,
Thank you for the great feedback. It's most appreciated. Happy designing.
Cheers,
Michael

[@madhveedeb]

I agree. This is the best multilevel TOC tutorial. Many other videos are misleading, as their titles are about layered TOC but they only end up showing how to generate simple TOC. Whereas this video in a very to the point manner explains and breaks the process to a logical, most simple to understand steps. Thanks, Michael Bullo.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you. Great to hear you found the tutorial helpful.

[@EgzonNikqiFB]

ME2!!! It's incredible that nobody is telling you how to make these adjustments.. except this guy here

[@ruth413]

This is fantastic! I will share it with my classmates on school!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you. I hope it helps.

[@joos1966]

Very helpful - I could pause underway and jump to my own and try it out.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thanks mate. A link to the demo files can be found in the description if it helps.

[@tayyababano6247]

A perfect way to explain TOC settings.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you. Best of luck with all those long documents :)

[@mrabmonnaf]

Absolutely a GREAT tutorial. Thanks much for this.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thanks mate. Hope it helps you with those long documents.

[@mariaestrada9422]

Excellent. Exactly what I needed and more. Thank you so much!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Maria. Best of luck with all your InDesign documents :)

[@timfitzgibbon9104]

Agreed, super tutorial, clear, easy to follow, spot on!

[@MichaelBullo]

Cheers Tim. Happy it helped.

[@brockwalker3136]

An excellent, clear tutorial!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you mate. Happy to have helped.

[@orsonlv]

Really good video. Exactly what I was looking for. Thanks mate.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thanks Orson. Great to hear.

[@jaylinhorta5367]

Saved me tones of time. Thank you very much!!

[@MichaelBullo]

Hey that's great to hear. Thanks for letting me know.

[@Ladygrace7]

Super! Really clear and easy to understand. Well done 👏🏻

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you for the feedback and I'm happy to hear this helped you out.

[@TreyRights23]

Very helpful as I'm formatting a TOC for my thesis!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you. Best of luck with the thesis.

[@anniemack9936]

Exactly what I needed. Thanks!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Annie. Great to hear.

[@cyberlizardcouk]

brilliantly straightforward. explanation without extra fluff..... now to see if it works the same in CS6

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you. I don't think you'll have any problems but let me know if you do.

[@cyberlizardcouk]

@@MichaelBullo thank you.

[@MichaelBullo]

@@cyberlizardcouk Cheers

[@LillianKZ123]

Excellent presentation. Your approach make it very logical and understandable.

[@MichaelBullo]

I appreciate the feedback and kind words Lillian. Thank you.

[@denhamk]

Worked like a charm! Thank you so much!!

[@MichaelBullo]

Great to hear. Thank you.

[@kevothedj]

I have been here for reference twice now because of how it is easily and well done

[@MichaelBullo]

Thanks for coming back and best of luck with all your InDesign documents.

[@Aaron_Lesse]

Thank you! I needed to implement multiple paragraph styles in a ToC and this video showed me how. It also showed me an alternative to using the Tabs function in the Type menu, as well as how to add spaces in the dotted lines between the ToC entries and the page numbers.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Aaron. I hope your InDesign projects are going well.

[@Aaron_Lesse]

@@MichaelBullo Improvements with InDesign projects continue!
Three months after first watching, I just watched again to indent "level 2" ToC entries.
Thanks again!

[@MichaelBullo]

@@Aaron_Lesse Welcome back. Happy to have helped you out again.

[@RichardSessums]

Excellent and helpful video. Thank you for creating and posting it.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Richard. I appreciate that.

[@innovativediy8726]

absolutly fantastic... very well explained

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you very much. Best of luck with all your documents.

[@izapawlukowska4545]

Thank you so much, it helped me a lot! You made it so clear and easy

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Iza. I appreciate the feedback and happy that it helped.

[@tabathumachimuka5554]

Thank you so much that's the best explanatory video ever

[@MichaelBullo]

Wow. That's very kind of you to say. Thank you and best of luck with your long documents.

[@bouzidiseifeddine5116]

Thanks a lot for this informative tutorial, all steps are well explained !

[@MichaelBullo]

Cheers mate. Happy it helped.

[@marcelolima8819]

Installed, everything works, thanks!

[@MichaelBullo]

Excellent. Happy designing :)

[@rosemaryjason2772]

Excellent tutorial, thank you so much!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Rosemary

[@Nicciolai]

Just found this and it's still so useful!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Nicola. Best of luck with those InDesign docs.

[@australiansiloarttrail2964]

Amazing! Thank you so much. So very clear and easy to understand.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you and great to hear

[@opeyemiafolabi7957]

Excellent Tutorial i must confess.. Thank you so much

[@MichaelBullo]

I'm happy to hear that. Thank you.

[@sygad1]

exceptionally clear and informative, thank you, helped enormously

[@MichaelBullo]

Thanks mate. I appreciate that and I'm happy to hear this helped.

[@sygad1]

@@MichaelBullo any chance of a follow up video explaining how to start the contents from a section. I have some pages at the beginning of an instruction manual that I have in a section that I don't wish to be part of the contents

[@MichaelBullo]

@@sygad1 That's a good question and a great video idea. Unfortunately I'm busy with work at the moment. I recommend posting this question on the Adobe InDesign forum where some experts should be able to guide you through the process. Best of luck.

[@genevievemunden]

Great tutorial. I might add that if you want the bookmarks to show in the .pdf so the viewer does not have to look for them, you have the option to set that view as the default view in the .pdf. I did this recently when I combined 5 documents in a .pdf and booked mark each document so it could be located easily and set the initial view to show the bookmarks so it was obvious where to go.

[@MichaelBullo]

That's a fantastic comment Genevieve. Thanks for sharing. For anyone else reading this you might find this other video useful...
How to Display PDF Bookmarks in Adobe Acrobat (Turn on by Default for File)
ruclips.net/video/FKtvmgq88O8/видео.html

[@sunilkapadiasurat]

Wow.....Thanks for the video Michael..... love it

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Sunil. Have fun creating all those TOCs :)

[@softsoundart7460]

Excellent tutorial. Thank you.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you. Appreciate it.

[@loublazquez2903]

Michael, thank you so much for this entire series. What a contribution to us! Would love to join as a follower. Lou, Munds Park, AZ

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Lou. That's very kind of you to say. I don't offer any kind of membership at the moment. Have a great day mate.

[@rudavidaltube]

this is what i was looking for thank you so much!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you. Best of luck with those long documents.

[@yaserazrak]

thank you very much the best lesson I've ever seen

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Mohamad. Very nice of you to say.

[@mohsinjamal3593]

this is wonderful Micheal... a big brave heart! so many kind regards

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Mohsin. That's very kind of you to say.

[@NobbyBinks]

You legend... Easy to follow and clear

[@MichaelBullo]

Thanks mate. Appreciate it.

[@dntnconsult1205]

Thank you so much! A million times helpful!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thanks mate. Great to hear. Cheers.

[@FRXGFA]

Idk what i would've without you

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you. That's very nice of you to say.

[@adeodatuskakorozya9064]

Thank you so much for this great tutorial

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you very much. I appreciate the comment.

[@sanneterlouw]

So clearly explained! Thanks a lot!

[@MichaelBullo]

Hey thank you. Appreciate it.

[@milesgirlm2m]

Super Useful Video and pretty easy to follow!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you. Hope you're building some cool stuff in InDesign :)

[@MadeinChinakiki]

Love your vid mate from another Aussie.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thanks mate. I appreciate that. Hope you're building some cool stuff in InDesign.

[@adhamhmad91]

Really helpful. thank you, dear Mr.Michael

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Adham. Happy to hear this helped you out.

[@ssmebd0]

Thank you for Excellent Tutorial.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thanks mate. Appreciate it.

[@MrWildlife80]

Thank you very much, really useful info, truly brilliant tutorial.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Basim. Very kind of you to say.

[@coversongsbytanu]

Amazing ! Learnt alot in a single video 😍 . Subscribed ! Thank you

[@MichaelBullo]

Hi Tanvi. I'm happy to hear that. Thanks for the sub. Happy designing :)

[@e.b.9821]

Thank you. This was so clear and helpful!

[@MichaelBullo]

I'm happy to hear that. Thank you.

[@lynnqi6451]

Thank you so much, it clarifies a lot of things for me!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Lynn. That's great to hear.

[@LafeJames]

PERFECT! Thank you!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you very much

[@trevorevans7101]

Fantastic, thank you, You're the best!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Trevor. I appreciate the support. Best of luck with all your InDesign docs.

[@muradasadov4440]

Thank you very much! Very usefull and clear explanation!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thanks Murad. Much appreciated.

[@danielpetrushevski7177]

Very helpful for me, thanks mate!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thanks Daniel. Happy to hear that.

[@bhairav1972]

Thank you Michael! It is a good help.

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you Bhairav. Great to hear.

[@ananda5287]

Very informative, I greatly appreciate you Bro!

[@MichaelBullo]

Thank you. I appreciate you stopping by.