Share via

Microsoft Word not showing in right-click "Open with" menu for PDF despite registry entry

Fedi Sabri 0 Reputation points
2025-09-20T09:31:47.8933333+00:00

im on windows 11
I initially tried setting Microsoft Word as the default app for PDF files using "Open with" > "Choose another app" option and selecting "Always use this app." However, this did not make Word appear in the right-click context menu for PDFs. Because that didn't work, I decided to manually check the registry and add Word under the ".pdf" file extension to the "Open with" list. When I looked in the registry, I found that Word was already listed there, but it still does not show up in the right-click menu.
I dont want to set word as the default app for pdf i just want it to be accessible from the open with menu for when i need it

Microsoft 365 and Office | Word | Other | Windows
0 comments

1 answer

Sort by: Most helpful
Most helpful Newest Oldest
  1. Arlene D 36,055 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2025-09-20T10:37:59.16+00:00

    Hi there!

    On Windows 11, Microsoft Word is not designed to appear in the right-click “Open with” menu for PDF files by default. Even if Word is listed in the registry, Windows only shows apps that are officially registered to handle PDFs.

    Word can open PDFs, but it is not registered as a standard PDF handler, which is why it does not show in the menu. The only way is to open Word first and then open the PDF from inside Word, or temporarily set Word as the default app if you want it available in “Open with.”

    Regards,

    Arlene D,

    Was this answer helpful?

    1 person found this answer helpful.
    0 comments

Your answer

Answers can be marked as 'Accepted' by the question author and 'Recommended' by moderators, which helps users know the answer solved the author's problem.