WPS Index Entry on macOS: Introduction

WPS Index Entry helps you mark keywords and generate a document index in WPS Writer; this guide covers 4 core tasks, with 4 available without membership and 0 membership-related items.

At a Glance

Metric	Value	Notes
Core tasks	4	Matches the number of rows in the How-to Index
Available without membership	4	Matches the number of Free rows in the index
Membership-related items	0	All listed tasks are available directly
Version restriction	None stated	The feature information shows no version restriction

About This Feature

Overview

Index Entry is a document-organization feature in WPS Writer for Mac. It lets you mark keywords in a long document and generate an index at a chosen location so readers can find topics by page reference more easily.

Core tasks include:

Mark index entries for selected keywords.
Add subentries to create a clearer topic hierarchy.
Insert an index into the document.
Update or remove index content by refreshing fields or deleting related field codes.

This feature is useful for books, training manuals, academic papers, policy documents, and other long documents that need topic-based lookup by page.

System Requirements

Item	Requirement
Operating system	A Mac device that can run WPS Office for Mac normally
App version	It is recommended to use the latest version of WPS Office for Mac
Network	No mandatory internet connection is required for local editing and index generation; internet access is needed for download and installation
Other	Open an editable document in WPS Writer so you can insert and update index fields

Download & Installation

Item	Details
Official download	WPS Office Free Download
Check after installation	Launch WPS Office for Mac, open WPS Writer, and confirm that index-related commands are available in the References area

Source: WPS Download Center

Compare with Alternatives

Dimension	WPS	Microsoft	Google	Notion	Adobe
Capability Summary	WPS Writer lets you mark index entries, add subentries, choose page number formatting, and insert an index from the References area.	Word supports marking index entries, adding subentries and cross-references, and building an index.	Google Docs officially supports headings and a table of contents linked to headings, but its help content does not describe a separate index-entry workflow for page-based indexing.	Notion supports headings, page structure, and table-of-contents style navigation for pages, but its help content does not describe a traditional page-number index workflow.	Acrobat supports bookmarks and nested bookmarks for PDF navigation, which helps readers jump through long documents, but this differs from a word-processor index built from marked entries.
WPS Advantages	Advantage: WPS keeps the full mark-insert-update workflow inside the writing interface. Distinct: It fits long documents that need page-based index output.	Compared with WPS: Word also provides a full indexing workflow and includes cross-reference options, so both tools fit formal document layout.	Compared with WPS: Google Docs focuses more on heading-based navigation and table of contents links than on page-based index entries.	Compared with WPS: Notion focuses more on block-based organization and page navigation than on print-style index output.	Compared with WPS: Acrobat focuses more on bookmark navigation in PDFs than on marking index entries during document writing.
Official Source	—	Create and update an index	Add a title, heading, or table of contents in a document	Block basics: build the foundation for your team’s pages	How to add bookmarks to PDF files

Overall Conclusion
If you need page-based indexing for long documents on macOS, WPS Writer provides a direct workflow for marking entries, inserting the index, and updating it later. Other products offer their own navigation methods, but they are generally centered on headings, blocks, or PDF bookmarks rather than the same index-entry workflow.

Use Cases

No.	Scenario	Suitable users	Main challenge	How WPS helps
1	Book topic lookup	Authors, editors	Readers need to find where a topic appears by page	Mark keywords first, then insert an index
2	Training manual organization	Trainers, documentation teams	Terms are scattered across a long file	Create main entries and subentries for key terms
3	Academic paper formatting	Students, researchers	Long documents become harder to maintain later	Refresh index fields to keep entries in sync
4	Policy document archiving	Admin and legal teams	Topic-based review takes time	Generate an index near the end of the document and update it when needed
5	Product manual writing	Technical writers	Many specialized terms increase lookup time	Mark multiple entries and build the index together

Membership & Benefits

Free vs WPS Premium

Capability	Free users	WPS Premium
Marking and inserting index entries	✅ Available	✅ Available
Basic PDF features	✅ Available	✅ Available with a broader feature range
Cloud storage	1 GB	20 GB, depending on plan
Template resources	Limited access	More advanced templates and added benefits

Source: WPS Office pricing page

Recommendations

Use case	Recommended plan	Why
Occasional long-document editing and indexing	Free	The index entry workflow itself is available directly for basic layout needs
More cloud storage, templates, or broader office features	WPS Premium	A better fit if you also need added storage, templates, and expanded office benefits

WPS membership center: Subscribe now