Paragraph style changing during Data Merge
Paragraph style changes when data merging if I have the "remove blank lines from empty fields" option turned on. (see attached video)
Michael Turner
shared this idea
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Anonymous
commented
I can confirm this issue still occurs in InDesign 2026 on macOS.
In my case, the problem appears when using Data Merge with:
• one text frame
• multiple merge fields on separate paragraphs
• different paragraph styles on each paragraph
• “Remove Blank Lines for Empty Fields” enabledSome records include an optional HOME line and some do not. Once a blank line is removed during preview, the following paragraph can appear to inherit the previous paragraph style incorrectly. After this happens, the preview remains wrong and seems to stay “stuck” in that state unless the styles are reapplied.
Important extra detail:
If I avoid relying on the preview and export the PDF directly from the Data Merge panel, the final PDF output appears correct. So the issue seems to affect the InDesign preview/composition state rather than the final merged PDF export.This makes the preview difficult to trust when checking merged layouts with optional fields.