uninstall and reinstall my microsoft Office on MAC

Question

Word is not showing on my MAC after a software up date. Apple suggestes uninstall and reinstalling Office.

Answer 1

Follow these steps to uninstall and then reinstall Office on the Mac.

1. Quit all Office apps

• Make sure Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and OneNote are closed.

2. Remove the Office applications

• Open Finder > Applications.
• Use Command + click to select all Microsoft Office/Microsoft 365 apps (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote).
• Press Ctrl + click on the selection and choose Move to Trash.
• Empty the Trash.

3. (If apps are still crashing or missing) Remove Office data folders

• In Finder, on the menu bar select Go > Go to Folder….
• Enter ~/Library/Containers/ and select Go.
• Move these folders to Trash if present:
  • com.microsoft.Word
  • com.microsoft.Excel
  • com.microsoft.Powerpoint
  • com.microsoft.Outlook
  • com.microsoft.OneNote
• Go back to the Library folder and open Group Containers.
• Move these (if present) to Trash:
  • UBF8T346G9.ms
  • UBF8T346G9.Office
• Empty the Trash again.

4. Reinstall Office

• Sign in to the Microsoft account dashboard used for the subscription or purchase (the same account that owns Microsoft 365/Office).
• From the Services & subscriptions or Overview page, locate the Office product.
• Select Install to download the Office installer for Mac.
• Open the downloaded installer package and complete the installation.

5. Open Word and activate

• After installation, open Word.
• Sign in with the same Microsoft account used above if prompted, to activate Office.

If Word still does not appear after reinstalling, repeat the uninstall steps and then use the standalone Office for Mac installer that matches the license (for example, Office 2024/2021/2019/2016 for Mac installer) from the provided Microsoft download links, then install and activate again.

---

References:

• Troubleshoot installing Office
• Microsoft Office activation and the Mac App Store
• Word for Mac error: "Microsoft Word has encountered a problem and needs to close"
• Office for Mac update error: "Office <update version> can't be installed on this disk"
• Office 2021 license does not work and ist not anymore in the portal listed - Microsoft Q&A
• Microsoft Office apps for Mac quit unexpectedly - Microsoft Q&A
• cannot install update in MAC sequoia - Microsoft Q&A
• I have a subscription to Office 365 and want to install it on my new laptop - Microsoft Q&A