Microsoft Word lags while typing on a document on MacOS

Question

Hi everyone,
as a researcher I'm actually using Word to write articles, and they need to be formatted in a way that probably gets the file heavier to digest for this application.
Typing, formatting, and modifying the file through the reviewer mode is a pain, especially when you go to page 4 and the document shift back to page 1 for no reason, or when you type a word and it takes a minute to see it displayed.
If you're thinking is a hardware issue, I checked it using other software with high CPU/GPU usage, and no problems were reported.

Is there any solution to this stability problem? I tried installing again Word, updating every software/OS, but nothing seems to help.

Here are my specs:
MacBook Pro - M3 PRO; 18 GB RAM; macOS Tahoe 26.2
Microsoft Word - Versione 16.105.3 (26020123)

Thanks

Answer 1

Hi @Stefano Zanoni

Thank you for bringing this issue to the Q&A forum.

Based on the information you described, I understand that Microsoft Word is becoming extremely slow and unstable when you work on large, heavily formatted academic documents—especially when using Track Changes and Reviewer mode. You experience delays when typing, unexpected jumps back to earlier pages, and overall poor responsiveness, despite using a high-performance MacBook Pro (M3 Pro, 18 GB RAM).

After researching this issue, it appears that many users are experiencing similar behavior, particularly with documents that contain:

• A large number of comments
• Complex formatting (styles, footnotes, tables, equations)
• Track Changes, especially when All Markup is enabled
• Potentially add-ins or embedded objects

When All Markup is turned on, Word has to continuously recalculate and re-render the entire document layout every time you type a single character. Please try switching the markup view:

Go to Review > Track Changes > Change All Markup to Simple Markup

Many users report a significant improvement in performance after making this change.

If the issue persists, could you please let me know:

• Did Word perform better on an earlier version with the same document?
• Does the problem occur with all large documents, or only this specific file?

If possible, you may also share the document has the issue with me via private message, and I can try to reproduce the issue in my own environment for further analysis.

Please let me know how it goes, I’ll be happy to continue helping you troubleshoot this.

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Answer 2

If Microsoft Word is lagging while typing on your Mac, especially in a document with heavy formatting or many tracked changes, there are a few potential solutions you can try:

1. Check for Excessive Tracked Changes: If your document contains many tracked changes or comments, this can significantly slow down Word. Consider accepting or rejecting changes periodically to improve performance. You can do this by going to the Review tab and managing the tracked changes.
2. Change View Mode: Ensure that you are in the Print Layout view mode, as other modes like Draft or Web Layout can sometimes cause display issues. You can switch to Print Layout under the View menu.
3. Reset Zoom Settings: Sometimes, zoom settings can affect how Word displays your document. Resetting the zoom to 100% can help. You can do this by going to the View tab and selecting Zoom.
4. Disable Add-ins: If you have any COM add-ins installed, they might be causing performance issues. Try disabling them temporarily to see if it improves the situation.
5. Update Software: Ensure that both your macOS and Microsoft Word are updated to the latest versions, as updates often include performance improvements and bug fixes.
6. Reinstall Microsoft Word: If the problem persists, consider uninstalling and then reinstalling Word to ensure that there are no corrupted files affecting performance.

If you've tried these steps and the issue continues, it may be worth checking if there are any specific settings or configurations in your document that could be optimized for better performance.

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References:

• Troubleshoot problems that occur when you start or use Word
• Word slows or stops responding if there are excessive tracked changes or comments