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Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://mintlify.com/davidgohel/flextable/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

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Captions

set_caption() attaches a caption to a flextable. When you use R Markdown or Quarto, settings from set_caption() take priority over knitr chunk options.

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Simple string caption

library(flextable)

ftab <- flextable(head(iris))
ftab <- set_caption(ftab, "My table caption")
ftab
A plain string caption carries no inline formatting. To add bold, italic, or color, use as_paragraph() instead.

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Formatted caption with as_paragraph()

Build the caption from chunks to apply font properties: 
library(flextable)
library(officer)

ftab <- flextable(head(cars))
ftab <- set_caption(
  ftab,
  as_paragraph(
    as_chunk("caption", props = fp_text_default(font.family = "Cambria"))
  ),
  word_stylename = "Table Caption"
)
ftab
The word_stylename parameter applies the named Word paragraph style to the caption. Use officer::styles_info() to list available style names in your reference document.
Formatted as_paragraph() captions are not supported in Quarto. In Quarto, caption content and numbering are managed by the Quarto framework itself.

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Auto-numbered captions

Combine set_caption() with officer::run_autonum() to produce a caption preceded by an automatic “Table N:” sequence in Word: 
library(flextable)
library(officer)

autonum <- run_autonum(seq_id = "tab", bkm = "mtcars")

ftab <- flextable(head(mtcars))
ftab <- set_caption(
  ftab,
  caption = "mtcars data",
  autonum = autonum
)
ftab
The bkm argument defines the Word bookmark name used for cross-referencing. In HTML and PDF output, the bookmark serves as the element identifier.

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set_caption() parameter reference

ParameterDefaultDescription
captionNULLCaption text (string) or formatted paragraph (as_paragraph()).
autonumNULLofficer::run_autonum() object for auto-numbering.
word_stylename"Table Caption"Word paragraph style applied to the caption.
fp_pfp_par(padding = 3)Paragraph formatting (alignment, spacing). Applies to HTML and Word, but not bookdown.
align_with_tableTRUEWhen TRUE, caption alignment follows the table’s alignment.
html_classesNULLCSS class(es) added to the <caption> element in HTML output.
html_escapeTRUEEscape HTML entities in the caption string.

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Captions across output formats

In rmarkdown::word_document() and rmarkdown::html_document(), numbered and cross-referenced captions are not expected by default. Use knitr chunk options or set_caption() with a plain string.In rmarkdown::pdf_document(), numbers are added automatically before the caption text.

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Knitr chunk options

You can set captions through chunk options instead of calling set_caption(). A typical chunk looks like: 
```{r}
#| tab.id: bookmark_id
#| tab.cap: caption text
flextable(head(cars))
```
Available chunk options:
OptionDescription
tab.idCaption ID / bookmark name.
tab.capCaption text.
tab.cap.styleWord paragraph style name for the caption.
tab.topcaptionTRUE to place caption above the table (default).
tab.lpCaption sequence prefix. Default "tab:".
tab.cap.prePrefix before the number. Default "Table ".
tab.cap.sepSeparator after the number. Default ": ".
tab.cap.tndTitle number depth. Default 0.
tab.cap.tnsSeparator between title number and table number. Default "-".
tab.cap.fp_textfp_text_lite() object for formatting the caption prefix.

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Footnotes

footnote() adds reference symbols to selected cells and places the footnote text in the table footer.

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Basic usage

ft <- flextable(head(iris))
ft <- footnote(ft,
  i = 1, j = 1:3,
  value = as_paragraph(
    c(
      "This is footnote one",
      "This is footnote two",
      "This is footnote three"
    )
  ),
  ref_symbols = c("a", "b", "c"),
  part = "header"
)
ft <- valign(ft, valign = "bottom", part = "header")
ft <- autofit(ft)
ft
Each element of ref_symbols corresponds to one element of the value paragraph. The symbol is appended to the matched cell and the footnote text appears as a footer row.

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Parameter reference

ParameterDefaultDescription
iNULLRow selector.
jNULLColumn selector.
valuerequiredas_paragraph() call with one element per distinct footnote.
ref_symbolsNULLCharacter vector of reference symbols (e.g. c("a", "b") or c("*", "†")). When NULL, no symbol is inserted.
part"body"Which part the selected cells belong to. "all" is not allowed.
inlineFALSEWhen TRUE, appends the new footnote on the same footer line as the previous one.
sep"; "Separator used between inline footnotes.
symbol_sep""Separator between multiple symbols in the same cell. Use "," to produce 1,2 instead of 12.

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Inline footnotes

When inline = TRUE, multiple footnote calls append to the same footer row rather than creating a new row each time: 
ft <- flextable(head(iris))
ft <- autofit(ft)
ft <- footnote(ft,
  i = 1, j = 1:2,
  value = as_paragraph(c("Footnote one", "Footnote two")),
  ref_symbols = c("a", "b"),
  part = "header", inline = TRUE
)
ft <- footnote(ft,
  i = 1, j = 3:4,
  value = as_paragraph(c("Footnote three", "Footnote four")),
  ref_symbols = c("c", "d"),
  part = "header", inline = TRUE
)
ft

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Shared symbol across multiple cells

When i and j select multiple cells but you provide a single symbol, the same symbol and footnote is shared across all of them: 
ft <- flextable(head(iris))
ft <- autofit(ft)
ft <- footnote(
  x = ft, i = 1:3, j = 1:3,
  ref_symbols = "a",
  value = as_paragraph("This is footnote one")
)
ft
footnote() and add_footer_lines() both add content to the footer, but serve different purposes:
footnote()add_footer_lines()
Adds symbol to cellYesNo
Links cell to footnote textYesNo
Accepts as_paragraph()YesYes
Suitable for general notesNoYes
Use footnote() when you need to mark specific cells with a symbol and associate each mark with an explanatory note. Use add_footer_lines() for general notes or source attributions that apply to the whole table.

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