How to disable or remove Copilot from Word (there is a solution - check 2nd edit)

Same issue - I'm using 365 on Mac and there does not appear to be any way to turn Copilot off. I do not want this. In fact, my dislike is so strong that I am already looking for alternative text editor solutions.

I see that a perpetual license for Microsoft Office does not come with Copilot - is this really the only option for those of us who don't want generative AI shoved into our workflow without notice?

Thanks for asking this question - I spent over an hour online with Microsoft support today to try and get assistance and they had no luck at all. I'm not a fan of paying for software to be made worse. Entertainingly, I asked CoPilot how to disable it in Word and it hallucinated up a nonsensical response that helped remind me why I wanted it disabled in the first place (not helpful, but clutters the UI and gets in the way). Hopefully enough of us ask this question we'll be given the option to get it out of the way.

I am in exactly the same situation. It feels absolutely insane and intrusive that there is no option to turn it off. Thanks for flagging this, hopefully Microsoft will do something.

I was able to successfully roll back to one where it doesn't appear.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KUlOsN1IAI I followed this video and it worked :)

Roll it back to version Version 2409 (Build 18025.20160) before they updated. Then we can wait until their update allows you to turn it off.

Hello,Leah Miller1

Welcome to the Microsoft community!

I have realized that you want to turn off Copilot.

Before that, I would like to ask you for some information to better address your question.

What is your current Office subscription? Are you currently a Microsoft 365 Personal Edition subscriber?

According to your reply, you should not have a subscription to the Copilot Pro version.

However, we recently received news that Copilot will be added to Microsoft 365 in some regions.

This should be the reason why you are having this issue after updating.

 Unlock your potential with Copilot and Designer in Microsoft 365 Personal and Family - Microsoft Stories Asia

Since this is an officially pushed update, the only way to confirm if there is an option to turn off the feature is through feedback at this point. Or rollback to an older version.

How to revert to an earlier version of Office - Microsoft Support

You can confirm your current version of Word by clicking File > Account > About Word

Search for "CMD" in the search box in the bottom left corner and run the command prompt as administrator.

cd %programfiles% \Common Files\microsoft shared\ClickToRun

Press Enter when you are done typing and type on the next line

For example: April 9, 2024, version 2403 (Build 17425.20176)

Officec2rclient.exe /update user updatetoversion=16.0.17425.20176

（The version here is the April version, you can follow the link below to choose a similar version time）

If you're Microsoft 365, you can check this connection

Update history for Microsoft 365 Apps (listed by date) - Office release notes | Microsoft Learn

How do I give feedback on Microsoft 365? - Microsoft Support

Feel free to post back if you need further assistance. 

Thank you for your understanding and patience and I look forward to hearing from you.

Ryan - MSFT | Microsoft Community Support Specialist