CoPilot keeps coming back in Word

Question

What is the current way to disable the copilot icon that follows you around the page. If I cannot disable to icon, how can I disable copilot entirely?

The check box in Options is no longer there, I have deleted it from the Tool Bar, the Trust Center method only worked of a day and I have tried to disable the privacy settings.

The icon is so disruptive!

Thank you!

Answer 1

Nope - still there! I do not mind Copilot its the annoying icon on the page. There has to be a way to get rid of it, or do we switch to google office products?

Answer 2

To stop the Copilot icon and disable Copilot in Word, use the in‑app Copilot setting or, if that is missing, use the privacy settings and keep Word updated, as current builds are removing the intrusive in‑document logo.

1. Check for the “Enable Copilot” setting in Word (Windows)
   1. Open Word.
   2. Go to File > Options > Copilot.
   3. Clear the Enable Copilot checkbox.
   4. Select OK, then close and restart Word.
   On Mac:
   1. Open Word.
   2. Go to Word > Preferences > Authoring and Proofing Tools > Copilot.
   3. Clear Enable Copilot.
   4. Close and restart Word.
   This turns Copilot off in that app on that device and disables Copilot features in Word.
2. If the “Enable Copilot” checkbox is not available The checkbox is only present starting with specific versions (for example, Word Version 2412 on Windows, Word 16.93 on Mac). If it is missing:
   1. Check the Word version using the steps in the “check which version” article referenced in the Copilot settings documentation.
   2. Update Office/Word using the “update your version” article referenced in the same documentation.
   3. After updating, look again for File > Options > Copilot (Windows) or Word > Preferences > Copilot (Mac) and clear Enable Copilot.
3. Use privacy settings to turn off Copilot when the checkbox is unavailable If the app version does not yet expose the Copilot checkbox, or it has been removed, Copilot can be disabled via connected experiences: On Windows:
   1. In Word, go to File > Account > Account Privacy > Manage Settings.
   2. Under Connected experiences, clear Turn on experiences that analyze your content.
   3. Select OK, then close and restart Word.
   On Mac:
   1. In Word, go to Word > Preferences > Personal Settings > Privacy.
   2. In Connected Experiences > Manage Connected Experiences, clear Turn on experiences that analyze your content.
   3. Select OK, then close and restart Word.
   This turns off content‑analyzing experiences such as Copilot across the Office apps for that account.
4. Update to remove the intrusive in‑document Copilot logo Recent updates have removed the persistent Copilot logo that appeared in the document window in some builds. Installing the latest update (for example, build 16.103.1 in the Current Channel (Preview) mentioned in the Q&A) removes that in‑document Copilot logo while Copilot remains disabled. Ensure Word is on the latest channel build available to the installation, then restart Word and re‑check that Enable Copilot is cleared and/or content‑analyzing experiences are turned off as above.
5. Ribbon icon vs. Copilot functionality Removing the Copilot button from the ribbon alone does not disable Copilot; it only hides that entry point. To fully disable Copilot, use either:
   • The Enable Copilot checkbox in Word’s Copilot options, or
   • The Turn on experiences that analyze your content privacy setting.

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References:

• Turn off Copilot in Microsoft 365 apps
• Frequently asked questions about Copilot in Word
• How to remove Copilot from Word in Office Home & Business 2024? - Microsoft Q&A
• How do I get rid of the Copilot icon on Docs as I'm working on them? - Microsoft Q&A
• How to remove new Copilot in-document icon in Microsoft Word? - Microsoft Q&A
• How to disable co-pilot on Mac - Microsoft Q&A
• Message in Word File/Options dialog box "Server drafts location...is not valid" - Microsoft Q&A