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flextable provides a family of border functions that let you control cell borders at different levels of granularity — from whole-table borders down to individual cell edges.

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Quick reference

FunctionWhat it does
border_remove(x)Remove all borders
border_outer(x, border, part)Set the outer (perimeter) border
border_inner(x, border, part)Set all inner borders (horizontal + vertical)
border_inner_h(x, border, part)Set inner horizontal borders
border_inner_v(x, border, part)Set inner vertical borders
hline(x, i, j, border, part)Set bottom border of selected rows
hline_top(x, j, border, part)Set top border of a table part
hline_bottom(x, j, border, part)Set bottom border of a table part
vline(x, i, j, border, part)Set right border of selected columns
vline_left(x, i, border, part)Set left outer border
vline_right(x, i, border, part)Set right outer border
surround(x, i, j, border, ...)Surround specific cells with borders
fp_border_default(...)Create a default border properties object

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Border properties

All border functions accept a border argument that must be created with officer::fp_border() or the convenience wrapper fp_border_default(). 
library(officer)

# Default border (thin black solid line)
border_obj <- fp_border(color = "black", width = 1, style = "solid")

# Convenience wrapper with sensible defaults
border_obj <- fp_border_default(color = "gray", width = 1)
fp_border_default() parameters:
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color
string
default:"\"black\""
Border color as a color name or hex string.
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width
number
default:"1"
Border width in points.
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style
string
default:"\"solid\""
Border line style. Common values: "solid", "dashed", "dotted".

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border_remove()

Removes all borders from a flextable. 
border_remove(x)
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x
flextable
required
A flextable object.

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border_outer()

Applies a border to the outer (perimeter) cells of one or all parts. 
border_outer(x, border = NULL, part = "all")
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x
flextable
required
A flextable object.
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border
fp_border
Border properties from officer::fp_border(). If NULL, uses the global default border color.
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part
string
default:"\"all\""
Which part to target: "body", "header", "footer", or "all".

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border_inner(), border_inner_h(), border_inner_v()

Apply borders to the inner cells of the table. 
border_inner(x, border = NULL, part = "all")
border_inner_h(x, border = NULL, part = "body")
border_inner_v(x, border = NULL, part = "all")
  • border_inner() — sets both horizontal and vertical inner borders.
  • border_inner_h() — sets only inner horizontal borders (between rows).
  • border_inner_v() — sets only inner vertical borders (between columns).
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x
flextable
required
A flextable object.
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border
fp_border
Border properties from officer::fp_border(). If NULL, uses the global default.
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part
string
Which part to target: "body", "header", "footer", or "all".

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hline(), hline_top(), hline_bottom()

Draw horizontal lines at specific rows. 
hline(x, i = NULL, j = NULL, border = NULL, part = "body")
hline_top(x, j = NULL, border = NULL, part = "body")
hline_bottom(x, j = NULL, border = NULL, part = "body")
  • hline() — draws a line below each selected row i. Sets both the bottom border of row i and the top border of row i + 1 for consistent rendering. When i = NULL, applies to every row.
  • hline_top() — draws a line at the very top of a part (the outer top edge). Does not accept a row selector.
  • hline_bottom() — draws a line at the very bottom of a part (the outer bottom edge). Does not accept a row selector.
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x
flextable
required
A flextable object.
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i
integer | formula | logical
Row selector (hline only). NULL targets all rows.
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j
integer | character
Column selector. NULL targets all columns.
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border
fp_border
Border properties from officer::fp_border(). If NULL, uses the global default.
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part
string
default:"\"body\""
Which part to target: "body", "header", "footer", or "all".

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vline(), vline_left(), vline_right()

Draw vertical lines at specific columns. 
vline(x, i = NULL, j = NULL, border = NULL, part = "all")
vline_left(x, i = NULL, border = NULL, part = "all")
vline_right(x, i = NULL, border = NULL, part = "all")
  • vline() — draws a line to the right of each selected column j. Also sets the left border of column j + 1. When j = NULL, applies to every column.
  • vline_left() — draws a line on the left outer edge of the table. Always targets column 1.
  • vline_right() — draws a line on the right outer edge of the table. Always targets the last column.
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x
flextable
required
A flextable object.
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i
integer | formula | logical
Row selector. NULL targets all rows.
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j
integer | character
Column selector (vline only). NULL targets all columns.
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border
fp_border
Border properties from officer::fp_border(). If NULL, uses the global default.
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part
string
default:"\"all\""
Which part to target: "body", "header", "footer", or "all".

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surround()

Draws borders around a specific set of cells. 
surround(
  x,
  i = NULL,
  j = NULL,
  border = NULL,
  border.top = NULL,
  border.bottom = NULL,
  border.left = NULL,
  border.right = NULL,
  part = "body"
)
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x
flextable
required
A flextable object.
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i
integer | formula | logical
Row selector.
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j
integer | character
Column selector.
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border
fp_border
Shortcut to set all four edges at once.
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border.top
fp_border
Top border. Overrides border if set.
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border.bottom
fp_border
Bottom border. Overrides border if set.
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border.left
fp_border
Left border. Overrides border if set.
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border.right
fp_border
Right border. Overrides border if set.
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part
string
default:"\"body\""
Which part to target: "body", "header", or "footer".

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Examples

Basic outer/inner border composition: 
library(officer)

big_border <- fp_border(color = "red", width = 2)
std_border <- fp_border(color = "orange", width = 1)

dat <- iris[c(1:5, 51:55, 101:105), ]
ft <- flextable(dat)
ft <- border_remove(x = ft)
ft <- border_outer(ft, part = "all", border = big_border)
ft <- border_inner_h(ft, border = std_border)
ft
Add a horizontal line below specific rows using a formula: 
library(officer)

ft <- flextable(head(iris))
ft <- border_remove(x = ft)
ft <- hline(ft, part = "all", border = fp_border(color = "gray"))
ft
Highlight individual cells with surround(): 
library(officer)
library(flextable)

std_border <- fp_border(color = "orange")

ft <- flextable(head(iris))
ft <- border_remove(x = ft)
ft <- border_outer(x = ft, border = std_border)

for (id in 1:3) {
  ft <- bg(x = ft, i = id, j = id, bg = "yellow")
  ft <- surround(
    x = ft, i = id, j = id,
    border.left = std_border,
    border.right = std_border,
    part = "body"
  )
}

ft <- autofit(ft)
ft

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See also