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Microsoft word using very high CPU on macbook pro 2023 with latest MS Word 16.99.2

Rob Moss 0 Reputation points
2025-08-01T00:13:54.8+00:00

I have been seeing very high CPU usage when editing a 200 page document in MS Word 16.99.2 on my MacBook Pro 2023 with 16GB RAM

Watching ActivityMonitor, MS Word will stay at 100% CPU and lock up MS Word with the spinning beach ball for 30 seconds or more every time I change a font, style, paste or undo.

This is obviously quite infuriating. I have read many other posts here that do not appear to have a solution.

So far I have

None of the above steps have resolved the issue. It looks like this has been an ongoing problem for many years with no solution from Microsoft. I am raising this now to try to get some help and focus.

I work a technology company and have been in tech for over 20 years. Please keep this in mind when making suggestions that may have already been covered above.

With consideration to all of the above, what actually is the problem and what is Microsoft doing about a real solution?

Microsoft 365 and Office | Word | For business | MacOS

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  1. Gabriel-N 19,210 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2025-08-01T02:48:11.2866667+00:00

    Dear Rob Moss

    Thank you again for your detailed report and for your patience in navigating this issue. I understand how stressful it must be to experience repeated freezing and high CPU usage, especially when working with large documents in a professional environment.

    As a forum moderator, I want to be transparent that I don’t have access to Microsoft’s internal engineering resources or source code, so I’m unable to provide a definitive fix. However, based on similar reports and your thorough troubleshooting, I’d like to offer the following suggestions:

    • Try reverting to an earlier version of Word (e.g., 16.98 or 16.97) to see if performance improves. 
    • If the issue persists, I recommend contacting Microsoft Support via Customer service phone numbers. They are best positioned to investigate and escalate the issue if needed. For Home user you may follow as these below images:

    User's image

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    Please know that performance issues can vary depending on hardware configurations, document complexity, and system environments. Microsoft actively monitors feedback from users like you to help prioritize fixes and improvements. Your report is valuable and contributes to that process.

    Thank you again for raising this. Please feel free to share any updates or findings, you’re helping others in the community who may be facing the same challenge.

    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.

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