If you want to use the modern features of Word 2019 or Office 365, you will need to upgrade your Word documents if they are based on an older version of the Word software. Upgrading ensures that your documents are compatible with the newer versions of Word and that you are able to use the new formatting and other tools available in the latest versions of the software.

1. Get Microsoft Word For Mac
2. Microsoft Word 2008 Will Not Open On Mac Free
3. Word Will Not Open In Windows 10
4. Microsoft Word 2008 Will Not Open On Mac Mini

Converting an old Word document to a newer version only takes a few clicks as long as the Word software is installed on your computer. When the file is converted, you’ll see it has a new extension that only newer Word files use.

Upgrade Word Documents Using The Word Software

If you have the Microsoft Office suite installed on your computer, you likely have Word installed as well. You can use this software without requiring any add-ons to upgrade your Word documents.

Right-click on the document you want to convert and select Open with followed by Word. This ensures the file opens in the right software.

Nov 06, 2019  Apple's free Pages, Numbers, and Keynote are not Microsoft clones and will not open your Microsoft documents in their native document format, nor export back to Microsoft document formats with original document accuracy. There are plenty of alternative word processing applications on the market that cost money, and import Word documents. Feb 21, 2020 When you try to open a Word document on Mac document, Word stops opening. If you are faced with this issue and are willing to solve it, then follow the 3 solutions. If you have data loss problem after fixing the Word not opening issue, EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac can do you a favor.

When the document opens, click on the File tab at the top-left corner. Then select the tab that says Info in the left sidebar and click on Convert in the right pane.

• Oct 11, 2019  Want to update to macOS Catalina but can't justify losing access to all the outdated 32-bit apps I rely on (looking at you Microsoft Word for Mac 2011).
• Hi, For the last couple of days, the word app on my mac won't open. It bounces after clicking in the icon and then nothing happens. I have to force the app to shut down. All the other office apps are working fine. I downloaded the latest version of Mac OS. What should I do to fix this?
• Safe Mode enables you to safely use Microsoft Word when it has encountered frozen, crashing and not open on Mac. Restart your Mac computer, at the same time, Press and hold the Shift key. Release the key when computer is turned on. You will see the Safe Boot on Mac startup screen.
• Start MS Word and click on the File menu. Choose the Open option and it will open up a dialog box where you can select the Word file which needs repair. While you are selecting the file, at the right bottom side of the window, choose the Repair option and click on the Ok button.

A dialog box will appear on your screen asking you to confirm your action. Here’s what it basically wants to tell you:

• Your old document will be replaced with the new upgraded one.

• There’ll be minor changes to the layout.

• Click on Tell Me More if you’d like to know more about the process. Also, if you don’t want to see this dialog box for future conversions, checkmark the checkbox.

• Finally, hit the OK button to start the conversion.

Another way to upgrade your document is to use the Word’s save menu. While the document is open, click on the File tab and select Save As.

Then select Word Document from the format drop-down menu and hit Save. Keep in mind that this doesn’t replace the old version of the document but creates a completely new copy of the document based on the newer Word software.

You can follow the above steps to upgrade as many of your old Word documents to newer versions as you want.

Also, since it’s just a matter of a few clicks and you have the ability to disable the dialog box, you can easily convert a number of documents in a short period of time.

Get Microsoft Word For Mac

Upgrade Word Documents to Microsoft Word Online

If you don’t have the Word software installed on your computer and you prefer to use the online Word app, you can also use it to convert your Word documents.

The online app provides pretty much the same features and interface as the offline one.

Open a modern web browser and head over to the Office online website. Once you’re there, sign-in to your account if you aren’t already.

When the main interface loads-up, click on the option that says Start new and select Upload and open. It’ll let you upload your old Word file from your computer.

Navigate to the folder where your document is and select it for it to be uploaded online.

When the file is uploaded and is open on your screen, click on the Edit Document option and then select Edit in Browser.

A prompt will appear saying it’ll first convert your file and then let you edit it. It also says a copy of your original document will be created.

Click on Convert in the prompt.

If you’d like to see the changes in the layout, click on View. Else, click on Edit to start editing the document.

To get a copy of the document for offline access, click on the File menu and select Save As followed by Download a Copy.

Click on Download on the following screen to start downloading the document to your computer.

The downloaded document should be the upgraded version of your old Word document.

Now that your documents are upgraded, you are free to use any of the modern functionalities of Word in them. You can use newer editing tools, use a newer file extension, and so on, without any worries.

Bear in mind, though, if you need to send the file back to someone and they use an older version of the software, they won’t be able to see the newer changes made to the document.

What Is Compatibility Mode In Microsoft Word?

When you open an old version of a document in the latest Word software, you’ll find a text saying Compatibility Mode appearing next to the document name at the top. Did you ever wonder what that text meant?

Compatibility Mode is actually a mode that the newer versions of Word use to ensure that when you edit your old documents, they aren’t being modified with the latest editing tools in the software.

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It’s because Word doesn’t want you to add any features to your old documents that the old versions of Word don’t understand. For example, if you add a new formatting option available in Word 2016 to your Word 2004 document, the 2004 version of Word won’t understand the formatting. It may then show the document with scrambled text and so on.

Compatibility Mode ensures things like that don’t happen and that you can only use the formatting and other tools that are fully compatible with your current Word document version.

Summary

When you try to open a Word document on Mac document, Word stops opening. If you are faced with this issue and are willing to solve it, then follow the 3 solutions. If you have data loss problem after fixing the Word not opening issue, EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac can do you a favor.

On this page, we have collected three practical solutions that can help fix the 'Word Not Opening' error on Mac. And if you mistakenly removed a Word file on Mac, let reliable Mac file recovery software as recommended here for help. Check out how to fix the not opening Word file to accessible again:

'Word 2016 on my Mac won't open. It flashes immediately by double-clicking and then closes unexpectedly. I didn't do anything or any change. How to fix it if Microsoft Word won't open at all?'

In addition to this situation, most users are also faced with these errors:

• The application Microsoft Word quit unexpectedly
• Microsoft Word cannot be opened because of a problem. Check with the developer to make sure Microsoft Word works with this version of Mac OS X

As Microsoft Word is widely used among people, owning some basic Word troubleshooting is recognized as an essential skill. Today you're going to learn three tricks in solving Word not opening on Mac. The given workarounds are applicable to all Word editions such as 2003, 2007, 2010, 2013 2016.

1. Run Repair Disk Permissions

Step 1: On the 'Go' menu, click 'Utilities'. Start the Disk Utility program.

Step 2: Choose the primary hard disk drive for your computer. Then, click the 'First Aid' tab.

Step 3: Click 'Run' to repair the disk volume errors and permissions. When it finishes, click 'Done'.

2. Remove Word Preferences

Step 1:Deactivate microsoft office license for mac. Open 'Library'. Usually, click 'GO' > 'Go to the folder', then type ~/Library

Step 2: Locate a file named as 'Preferences'.

Step 3: Find a file named as com.microsoft.Word.plist. Move the file to the desktop.

Start Word, and check whether the problem still occurs.

If the problem still occurs, exit Microsoft Word, and then restore the 'com.microsoft.word.prefs.plist' file to its original location. Then, go to Step 4.

If the problem seems to be resolved, you can move the file to the trash.

Note: If you do not locate the file, the program is using the default preferences.

Step 4: Exit all Microsoft Office for Mac programs. Then, Click the Word icon. On the left, click 'Preferences'.

Step 5: Click 'File Locations'.

Step 6: Select 'User templates'.

Step 7: Locate the file that is named Normal, and move the file to the desktop.

You can also find the file named as Normal through this way: 'Library' > 'Application Support' > 'Microsoft' > 'Office' > 'User Templates' > 'Normal'

Start Word, and check whether the problem still occurs. If the problem seems to be resolved, you can move the 'Normal' file to the trash.

3. Try to Open and Repair Word

Step 1: Start Word. On the File menu, click 'Open'.

Step 2: In the Open dialog box, select the file that you want to open. Click the down arrow on the Open button, click 'Open' > 'Repair'.

Recover Deleted and Missing Word on Mac

Do not worry if the 'Word not opening' issue causes data loss disaster, you can recover unsaved Word document on Mac from its Temporary folder and AutoRecovery save. While for a deleted Word document on Mac, the easiest way of recovery is using a third-party Mac data recovery software.

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac also recovers Word document that is missing, deleted or lost due to formatting, virus infection and other misoperation, and the best part of using the software to recover Word is being able to preview the file entirety.

Step 1. Select the location where your important Word documents were lost and click Scan button.

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Step 2. EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac will start immediately a quick scan as well as a deep scan on your selected disk volume. Meanwhile, the scanning results will be presented in the left pane.

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Step 3. By Path and Type, you can quickly filter the Word files you've lost earlier. Select the target files and click Recover Now button to get them back at once.