Lagging of typing in MSWord

Question

When typing a document or editing an existing document, the typing lags, making it very frustrating. I have tried to repair this online, but the problem continues. Please help

Answer 1

Hello Derick Seagers,

To fix this issue, follow these steps:

1. Close all instances of Word.
2. Restart Word, and then open a new blank document.
3. On the Review tab, select All Markup in the Tracking group.
4. Select Show Markup, and then set Balloons to Show only comments and formatting in balloons.
5. Use File > Open to open the problematic document.

At this point, Word should be responsive. You can now accept or reject any changes, and remove comments.

Best Regards,

Jerald Felix

Answer 2

Hi @Derick Seagers

Thank you for posting your question in the Microsoft Q&A forum.  

I completely understand how disruptive that can be when you're trying to get work done. This kind of lag usually points to something going on with your local machine. To help me narrow down what might be happening, could you please tell me which version of Word you're using and what version of Windows you're running? However, before you provide further information, I kindly request you to try some of the following troubleshooting steps, which I believe may be effective in resolving the issue for you. 

1.Remove the Default Template file > Open File Explorer by pressing Win + E > The file path can vary depending on your specific Windows version. You'll typically find the Normal.dotm file (for Word 2007/10/13 or higher) at these locations: 

For most Windows versions: C:\Users[Username]\appdata\Microsoft\Templates 

Specifically on Windows 10/11, you might find it here: C:\Users[Your User Name]\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Templates 

Find the file named Normal.dot or Normal.dotm, and delete it or rename it (e.g., to Normal.old) > Restart Microsoft Word.  2. Clean up the Temporary files > Press and hold Windows + R > Type cleanmgr and press Ok > Select the drive where Windows is installed (usually C:) > Click OK > select the Temporary files option > Click OK and then Delete Files to clean up the temporary files. 

3. Enter the safe mode and check the situation > Press and hold Windows + R > Enter winword/safe > enter the Word safe mode to check the usage. If it is normal, check File > Options > Add-ins > COM add-ins > uncheck all add-ins > OK > restart Word 

Based on my research, other users on this forum have experienced similar typing lag in Word and found solutions. Please take a look at the following link: Laggy Word operation - Microsoft Q&A 

I hope this information can help you to solve your issue soon. If the issue persists, please feel free to send me more information.

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Answer 3

Does this issue affect long and short documents equally? In that case, I would recommend that you troubleshoot add-ins. See https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/office/troubleshoot/word/issues-when-start-or-use-word.