longtable

Longtable is a LaTeX package that provides the longtable environment, enabling tables that extend over more than one page. It addresses the limitation of the standard tabular environment, which cannot break across pages. By using longtable, a table can automatically insert page breaks and repeat header rows on new pages, keeping the data readable.

To use it, include \usepackage{longtable} in the document preamble. A longtable begins with \begin{longtable}{column spec}. The table can contain a caption and label, typically placed at the top. The header and footer lines are defined using the special anchors: \endfirsthead marks the end of the first-page header; \endhead marks the header to repeat on subsequent pages; \endfoot marks the footer on all pages; and \endlastfoot marks the final page's footer. A typical pattern places the column headings before \endfirsthead, then repeats a header after \endhead, and defines continuation notes after \endfoot. Data rows follow after \endlastfoot. Longtables are not floating; LaTeX will break them across pages as needed, and the resulting table appears in the text flow where placed.

Captions in longtable are associated with the table via \caption and can be referenced with \label. The package cooperates with other packages such as booktabs for improved horizontal rules and with packages affecting page geometry. Limitations include the complexity of including footnotes inside cells; several workarounds exist (such as tablefootnote or threeparttable). Longtable is suited for large data tables in reports and theses where a single-page table is insufficient.