Word shows HYPERLINK field code instead of text: toggle display, not the style
By ON Lab · Sources checked November 8, 2026
If Word on Windows shows a field instruction such as { HYPERLINK ... } instead of the link's displayed text, check field-code display before editing the hyperlink style. Shift+F9 switches a selected field between its code and result; Alt+F9 switches all field codes and results. These are different from updating or unlinking a field.
The reader question behind this guide describes hyperlink instructions appearing instead of the intended words. Microsoft's current keyboard reference documents the field display controls, and its cross-reference guide explains the distinction between a field's code and its result. This article is source-based guidance for desktop Word on Windows; it is not a local Word application test or a Mac/web shortcut guide.
Identify the visible symptom
| What you see | First check | Do not change first |
|---|---|---|
| A field instruction in braces, such as HYPERLINK or REF | Whether Word is displaying field codes | The entire document's text style |
| Normal link text in an unexpected color | The formatting of that link or style | Field-code display based only on color |
| A normal link whose destination fails | The actual target and failure message | The link's display mode as a substitute for target repair |
| Literal typed text that merely looks like a field instruction | Whether it is an actual Word field | Expecting a field toggle to convert ordinary text into a field |
Use a copy if the document matters. Choose one affected example and record both what is displayed and what should appear. That keeps a display investigation separate from changing the destination or deleting field behavior.
Try a selected-field display change first
Select the affected field and use Shift+F9 to switch that field's display. Microsoft's current shortcut table distinguishes this from the all-fields command. Inspect the result immediately: did the intended link text appear, and did unrelated fields remain as they were?
The official cross-reference guide also documents a context-menu route: right-click the field code and choose Toggle Field Codes. If the keyboard combination is intercepted by the computer's function-key behavior, the relevant Word context menu can help you inspect the same display choice. Do not keep pressing unrelated function-key combinations.
Some field results and codes can look similar. A change in display is useful evidence only when you compare the same actual field before and after the operation.
Use the all-fields toggle when the whole document changed
If several unrelated fields are showing their instructions, Alt+F9 is the documented Windows command for switching all field codes and results. Inspect a hyperlink and another known field afterward. Do not judge the outcome from a single paragraph if the command affected the whole document's field display.
A display toggle is reversible, but it does not repair a broken link target or regenerate a missing reference. If a field result contains an error, retain that exact error for a separate investigation after you can read the intended result.
Keep the nearby commands distinct
| Command | Documented purpose | Why the distinction matters |
|---|---|---|
| Shift+F9 | Switch selected field code/result display | A limited display check |
| Alt+F9 | Switch all field codes/results | A document-wide display change |
| F9 | Update selected fields | Updating is not simply changing their display |
| Ctrl+Shift+F9 | Unlink a field | It is not the substitute for hiding field instructions |
Read the shortcut before using it. If your goal is to show the link's words, do not choose an unlink operation merely because it contains F9 too. The field's continued behavior may matter for future edits.
Verify the document after the display change
- Inspect the affected link's displayed text.
- Confirm the intended destination separately through Word's link controls or your normal safe review process.
- Check another field if you used the all-fields toggle.
- Save the working copy, close it and reopen it.
- Compare the same examples before treating the result as complete.
This is a recommended verification workflow. We did not follow a private hyperlink or save a personal document. A change from code to result is not evidence that the destination is reachable or that a later PDF export preserves every interactive feature.
If nothing changes
Check whether the selected material is a real field rather than ordinary text copied from a tutorial or another application. Record the Word version, exact display and which command you used. If the result is still a field instruction, preserve a small non-confidential example instead of replacing every brace or hyperlink instruction through Find and Replace.
If the problem is the generated contents list's font, use the separate TOC level-style guide. That changes appearance through the relevant style. This guide concerns field instructions being displayed instead of their results.