guides•

Feb 1, 2025

•

6 min read

How to Create a Table of Contents for EPUB & PDF (Beginner-Friendly Guide)

By CreatorFormat Team

TL;DR: Creating a Table of Contents for EPUB and PDF is easy: (1) Use heading styles (H1, H2, H3) in Google Docs or Word, (2) Insert auto-generated TOC, (3) Export as PDF or convert to EPUB using CreatorFormat or Calibre. The TOC will be clickable and navigable on all devices.

A Table of Contents (TOC) is one of the most important parts of any ebook. Whether you're publishing on Amazon KDP, sending a training PDF, or creating an EPUB for online reading, a proper TOC:

Helps readers navigate your book
Improves Kindle and EPUB reader compatibility
Reduces publishing errors
Makes your content look professional

The best part? You can create a clean, clickable TOC without complex software.

In this guide, you'll learn the easiest ways to create a Table of Contents for both EPUB and PDF using free tools.

Why a TOC Matters in EPUB & PDF

A professional TOC makes your ebook:

EPUB:

Fully navigable in Kindle, Kobo, Google Play Books
Structured for screen readers
Less likely to get rejected by Amazon KDP
Easier for readers to jump between chapters

PDF:

Enables clickable bookmarks
Improves UX on desktop/mobile
Makes your document look clean and professional
Saves scrolling time for long documents

Method 1: Create a Clickable TOC Using Google Docs (Free & Easy)

Google Docs automatically generates a TOC based on your Headings.

Step 1: Apply headings

Select your chapter titles → choose:

Heading 1 for main chapters
Heading 2 for sub-sections

Step 2: Insert a Table of Contents

Insert → Table of contents → Choose style:

With links (recommended)
Plain text

This TOC will work perfectly when you export to PDF.

Step 3: Export

File → Download as:

PDF
EPUB (if using an add-on or third-party exporter)

Google Docs maintains clickable links in both formats.

Method 2: Create a TOC in Microsoft Word (Perfect for EPUB/PDF)

Word is even more powerful if you're creating a book.

Step 1: Set headings

Use:

Heading 1 = Chapters
Heading 2 = Sections
Heading 3 = Subsections

Step 2: Insert Table of Contents

References → Table of Contents → Choose a style

Step 3: Export

File → Save as → PDF
File → Save as → Web Page (.html)
You can then convert the .html file to EPUB using:

Calibre
CreatorFormat
Online EPUB converters

Word’s TOC is extremely compatible with Kindle.

Method 3: Create EPUB TOC Using Calibre (Free)

Calibre auto-generates a Table of Contents when converting.

Steps:

Open your .docx, .html, or .pdf in Calibre
Click Convert Books
Go to Table of Contents tab
Enable "Detect chapters based on headings"
Export as EPUB or MOBI

This works great if your document already uses proper headings.

Method 4: Use an Online Tool (Fastest Way)

Tools like:

CreatorFormat EPUB Viewer / Ebook Formatter
Reedsy Editor
Draft2Digital

These tools automatically detect chapter breaks and generate a TOC.

Perfect if you want a quick, clean EPUB output without technical knowledge.

Common TOC Mistakes to Avoid

Here are the biggest errors beginners make:

Using bold text instead of headings
Adding page numbers in EPUB TOC (EPUB readers don't use fixed pages!)
Not linking TOC items
Creating a TOC manually
Forgetting the "Start of Chapter" indicators

Always use Heading styles, not manual formatting.

Best Practices for a Professional Ebook TOC

Keep chapter names short
Use consistent formatting
Start chapters on a new page
Include both a visible TOC page and a navigation TOC (EPUB NCX)
Test your ebook in:
- Kindle Previewer
- Calibre Viewer
- Online EPUB Viewer (like ours)
- Mobile devices

Final Thoughts

Creating a clean Table of Contents is one of the easiest ways to level up your ebook and make it look professionally formatted. Whether you're making a PDF, EPUB, or uploading to Amazon KDP, using proper headings and auto-generated TOCs ensures:

No rejection issues
Perfect navigation
A polished reading experience

If you want a fast, accurate way to format EPUB, PDF, and Kindle files, try using your EPUB Viewer / Converter inside CreatorFormat—it's built exactly for this purpose.

Use heading styles (H1, H2, H3) in your document, then convert to EPUB using tools like CreatorFormat or Calibre. These tools automatically generate a clickable navigation TOC from your headings. The TOC will work on all e-readers including Kindle, Kobo, and Apple Books.

Yes. Apply heading styles to your chapter titles in Google Docs, then Insert > Table of Contents. Export as PDF (TOC will be clickable) or upload the document to CreatorFormat to convert to EPUB with a properly formatted navigation TOC.

No. If you use proper heading styles (H1, H2, H3), conversion tools and Amazon KDP will automatically generate a navigation TOC. Manual TOCs often cause errors and are unnecessary with modern ebook tools.

Common issues: (1) You used bold text instead of heading styles, (2) Your converter didn't detect chapters, (3) TOC wasn't generated during conversion. Fix by using proper H1/H2/H3 headings and reconverting with a tool like CreatorFormat or Calibre.

No. EPUB is a reflowable format, meaning page numbers change based on device, font size, and screen. Page numbers in a TOC will be inaccurate and confusing. Use chapter names and section titles only.

A visible TOC is a page in your book showing chapter listings. A navigation TOC (NCX) is the interactive menu in e-readers' navigation panels. Best practice: include both. Most conversion tools create the navigation TOC automatically from headings.

Yes. Use Google Docs or Microsoft Word with heading styles and auto-generated TOC, then export as PDF. The TOC will be clickable in PDF readers. You don't need Adobe Acrobat for basic clickable TOCs.

About the Author

The CreatorFormat Team specializes in ebook formatting and publishing tools. We've helped thousands of authors create professional EPUBs and PDFs with perfect table of contents for Amazon KDP, Apple Books, and other platforms.

Share this article

guides

Try Our Free Tools

Convert PDFs, compress images, and more — all in your browser, completely free.

Browse Tools

guides•

Feb 1, 2025

•

6 min read

How to Create a Table of Contents for EPUB & PDF (Beginner-Friendly Guide)

By CreatorFormat Team

TL;DR: Creating a Table of Contents for EPUB and PDF is easy: (1) Use heading styles (H1, H2, H3) in Google Docs or Word, (2) Insert auto-generated TOC, (3) Export as PDF or convert to EPUB using CreatorFormat or Calibre. The TOC will be clickable and navigable on all devices.

Helps readers navigate your book
Improves Kindle and EPUB reader compatibility
Reduces publishing errors
Makes your content look professional

The best part? You can create a clean, clickable TOC without complex software.

In this guide, you'll learn the easiest ways to create a Table of Contents for both EPUB and PDF using free tools.

Why a TOC Matters in EPUB & PDF

A professional TOC makes your ebook:

EPUB:

Fully navigable in Kindle, Kobo, Google Play Books
Structured for screen readers
Less likely to get rejected by Amazon KDP
Easier for readers to jump between chapters

PDF:

Enables clickable bookmarks
Improves UX on desktop/mobile
Makes your document look clean and professional
Saves scrolling time for long documents

Method 1: Create a Clickable TOC Using Google Docs (Free & Easy)

Google Docs automatically generates a TOC based on your Headings.

Step 1: Apply headings

Select your chapter titles → choose:

Heading 1 for main chapters
Heading 2 for sub-sections

Step 2: Insert a Table of Contents

Insert → Table of contents → Choose style:

With links (recommended)
Plain text

This TOC will work perfectly when you export to PDF.

Step 3: Export

File → Download as:

PDF
EPUB (if using an add-on or third-party exporter)

Google Docs maintains clickable links in both formats.

Method 2: Create a TOC in Microsoft Word (Perfect for EPUB/PDF)

Word is even more powerful if you're creating a book.

Step 1: Set headings

Use:

Heading 1 = Chapters
Heading 2 = Sections
Heading 3 = Subsections

Step 2: Insert Table of Contents

References → Table of Contents → Choose a style

Step 3: Export

File → Save as → PDF
File → Save as → Web Page (.html)
You can then convert the .html file to EPUB using:

Calibre
CreatorFormat
Online EPUB converters

Word’s TOC is extremely compatible with Kindle.

Method 3: Create EPUB TOC Using Calibre (Free)

Calibre auto-generates a Table of Contents when converting.

Steps:

Open your .docx, .html, or .pdf in Calibre
Click Convert Books
Go to Table of Contents tab
Enable "Detect chapters based on headings"
Export as EPUB or MOBI

This works great if your document already uses proper headings.

Method 4: Use an Online Tool (Fastest Way)

Tools like:

CreatorFormat EPUB Viewer / Ebook Formatter
Reedsy Editor
Draft2Digital

These tools automatically detect chapter breaks and generate a TOC.

Perfect if you want a quick, clean EPUB output without technical knowledge.

Common TOC Mistakes to Avoid

Here are the biggest errors beginners make:

Using bold text instead of headings
Adding page numbers in EPUB TOC (EPUB readers don't use fixed pages!)
Not linking TOC items
Creating a TOC manually
Forgetting the "Start of Chapter" indicators

Always use Heading styles, not manual formatting.

Best Practices for a Professional Ebook TOC

Keep chapter names short
Use consistent formatting
Start chapters on a new page
Include both a visible TOC page and a navigation TOC (EPUB NCX)
Test your ebook in:
- Kindle Previewer
- Calibre Viewer
- Online EPUB Viewer (like ours)
- Mobile devices

Final Thoughts

No rejection issues
Perfect navigation
A polished reading experience

If you want a fast, accurate way to format EPUB, PDF, and Kindle files, try using your EPUB Viewer / Converter inside CreatorFormat—it's built exactly for this purpose.

No. EPUB is a reflowable format, meaning page numbers change based on device, font size, and screen. Page numbers in a TOC will be inaccurate and confusing. Use chapter names and section titles only.

Yes. Use Google Docs or Microsoft Word with heading styles and auto-generated TOC, then export as PDF. The TOC will be clickable in PDF readers. You don't need Adobe Acrobat for basic clickable TOCs.