can't add in add-ins to word, excel, powerpoint

Question

I am trying to add various add-ins to my Mac 365 apps - e.g., for Word, I can find the add in marketplace, send it to Word, and select 'allow and continue' in the sidebar - the sidebar then says I need to sign in (even though I'm already signed in) but when I click the 'sign in' button nothing happens and I have no add-ins. Advice to work around??

Answer 1

Use the built-in Office Add-ins experience in the Mac apps and verify that the add-ins are correctly installed and loaded; then, if needed, sideload and test an add-in to rule out account or Store issues.

1. In Word/Excel/PowerPoint for Mac, go to the Insert tab and look for the Add-ins group.
2. Select Get Add-ins to browse the Office Store, or My Add-ins to see add-ins already associated with the account.
3. From My Add-ins, try inserting one of the add-ins directly into a document and confirm whether it appears and functions. This verifies that the add-in is actually installed for the account.
4. If the Store-based sign-in button in the task pane still does nothing, test with a sideloaded add-in to confirm that the host app and account can run add-ins correctly:
   • Use Finder and press Cmd+Shift+G.
   • For Word, go to /Users/<username>/Library/Containers/com.microsoft.Word/Data/Documents/wef (create the wef folder if it does not exist). For Excel or PowerPoint, use the corresponding paths shown in the reference.
   • Copy the add-in’s manifest file into that wef folder.
   • Restart Word (or Excel/PowerPoint), open a document, then select Home > Add-ins and choose the sideloaded add-in from the menu.
   • Verify that the add-in loads and displays in the document.
5. If sideloaded add-ins work but Store add-ins do not, the issue is likely with the Store sign-in flow or organizational restrictions on add-ins. In that case, continue using sideloaded add-ins or contact the organization’s admin to review add-in policies.

If a sideloaded add-in later needs to be removed, clear the Office cache as described in the referenced article.

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References:

• Get Add-Ins for Office for Mac
• Sideload Office Add-ins on Mac for testing