Office apps on macOS crash or freeze after recent updates

Question

Office apps on macOS crash or freeze after recent updates

Dennis Marianne 65

Our users on macOS are experiencing Microsoft Office apps (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) freezing or crashing shortly after launch or during normal use. The issue started after recent Office or macOS updates. Licensing and sign-in appear正常 but the matter is we are not in China, so what happening right now ?

Jared Kove 0 Reputation points

2026-02-17T09:48:33.74+00:00

This is really really annoying - all apps up to date but outlook and word crash at the same time.
Michelle-N 20,745 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-02-26T13:56:11.48+00:00

Hi @Jared Kove

Thank you for sharing your issue.

Since this appears to be a different scenario, I recommend creating a new thread and including details such as your macOS version and Outlook/Word version. This will help avoid mixing multiple issues in one discussion and allow moderators to focus on your specific case more effectively.

Creating a separate thread will also enable us to request additional information via private message if needed, while helping protect personal or organizational data.

Thank you for your understanding.

Answer accepted by question author

Michelle-N 20,745 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Hi @Dennis Marianne

Thank you for reaching out to Microsoft Q&A Forum and sharing your experience.

Based on the information you described, I understand that users on macOS are experiencing Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) freezing or crashing shortly after launch or during normal use. The issue appears to have started after recent Office or macOS updates. Licensing and sign-in status look normal, and since your users are not located in China, regional service restrictions should not be a factor here.

To help narrow down the issue, could you please share a screenshot of the error message or crash screen you are seeing? You can send it to me via private message.

Additionally, could you confirm:

Which macOS version the affected users are running?
Which Microsoft Office version is currently installed?

You mentioned that a previous version was working normally, so as a temporary workaround, you may try reinstalling a stable Office version from an earlier release and disable automatic updates for now. Please refer the following link:

Update history for Office for Mac

Once you have this information, feel free to share it with me and I’ll be able to assist you more effectively. Looking forward to your update.

If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it. If you have extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment".

Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.

Dennis Marianne 65 Reputation points

2026-01-24T06:04:40.8966667+00:00

I've sent the message for you, thank you for the support
Michelle-N 20,745 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-01-26T00:05:27.9866667+00:00

Hi @Dennis Marianne

Thank you for your update. If you have any updates or need further support, feel free to leave a comment and let me know.

1 additional answer

Your answer

Jared Kove 0 Reputation points

2026-02-17T09:48:33.74+00:00

This is really really annoying - all apps up to date but outlook and word crash at the same time.
Michelle-N 20,745 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-02-26T13:56:11.48+00:00

Hi @Jared Kove

Thank you for sharing your issue.

Since this appears to be a different scenario, I recommend creating a new thread and including details such as your macOS version and Outlook/Word version. This will help avoid mixing multiple issues in one discussion and allow moderators to focus on your specific case more effectively.

Creating a separate thread will also enable us to request additional information via private message if needed, while helping protect personal or organizational data.

Thank you for your understanding.
Dennis Marianne 65 Reputation points

2026-01-24T06:04:40.8966667+00:00

I've sent the message for you, thank you for the support
Michelle-N 20,745 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-01-26T00:05:27.9866667+00:00

Hi @Dennis Marianne

Thank you for your update. If you have any updates or need further support, feel free to leave a comment and let me know.

Answer 1

If Microsoft Office apps on macOS are crashing or freezing after recent updates, there are several troubleshooting steps you can take to resolve the issue:

Quit All Office Applications: Ensure that all Office applications are closed before proceeding with any troubleshooting.
Remove Preferences: You can try removing the Office preferences:
- Open the hidden Library folder by holding down the OPTION key while selecting the Go menu in Finder.
- Navigate to Group Containers and look for folders ending with ".Office". Delete the Com.microsoft.officeprefs.plist file to reset preferences.
Reinstall Office: If the issue persists, consider uninstalling and then reinstalling the Office apps. You can do this by moving the applications to the trash and deleting relevant folders in the ~/Library/Containers/ directory.
Check for Updates: Ensure that both macOS and Microsoft Office are updated to the latest versions, as updates often include fixes for known issues.
Safe Mode: Try starting your Mac in Safe Mode to see if the issue persists. This can help determine if background processes are causing conflicts.
Repair Disk Permissions: If you're using macOS 10.2 or later, you can use the Disk Utility to repair disk permissions, which may resolve issues related to app behavior.

If these steps do not resolve the issue, it may be beneficial to consult Microsoft's support documentation for further assistance.

References: