my files will not always save to my folders

Question

My files will save as I work on them, then they stop saving them and I have to create new versions ending with multiple versions on my hard drive. Everything I have tried does not work. MAC office 365 subscription

Answer 1

Hi, Susan Warda

This usually points to a Mac permissions/cache problem or a Word/OneDrive sync issue, not necessarily a bad document.

Here are some suggestions you can try:

In Word, go to Word > Preferences > Save, turn on Save to Computer by default, and set a local folder on the Mac as the default save location. That can stop Word from bouncing between cloud and local locations.

In macOS, check Privacy & Security > Files and Folders for Word, and if needed also Full Disk Access, so Word can write to Documents/Desktop properly.

It is recommended that you clear the Office cache on the Mac if Save/Save As has started hanging or failing. That is specifically documented as a fix for Office save problems on Mac.

If the files are in OneDrive, it is suggested that you turn off "Use Office applications to sync Office files” in OneDrive settings, so Word saves locally first and OneDrive syncs afterward.

If the Save As window itself is glitching, try Command + Shift + S as a temporary workaround. This is a commonly effective bypass for broken Save As behavior on Mac.

Thank you for your patience in reading, I hope this information has been helpful to you. 

---

If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it. If you have extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment."    

Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread. 

Answer 2

On macOS with Microsoft 365, this behavior is usually caused by how and where the files are saved, especially when OneDrive or AutoSave is involved.

Try these targeted checks and fixes:

1. Confirm where the file is stored

• In Word, open one of the problem documents.
• Go to File > Save As and note the folder path.
• If the file is in OneDrive and you recently updated macOS (12.1 or later), OneDrive’s path may have changed. OneDrive files now live under:
  • Library > Cloud Storage > OneDrive
• If Word is still pointing to the old OneDrive location, AutoSave and normal saving can fail, forcing creation of new versions.

2. Re-save to the new OneDrive location (if using OneDrive) If the file is in OneDrive and AutoSave or saving stops working:
3. In Word, select File > Save As.
4. Browse to Library > Cloud Storage > OneDrive (or use the OneDrive alias shown in Finder).
5. Save the document there and continue working from that new location. This restores proper saving and AutoSave behavior for that file.
6. Ensure AutoSave is supported for the file AutoSave is only enabled when:

• The file is stored in OneDrive, OneDrive for Business, or SharePoint Online.
• The file is opened from File > Open inside Word (not just double-clicked from Finder in some cases). AutoSave will be disabled or unreliable if:
• The file is in an older format such as .doc instead of .docx.
• The file is stored only in a local folder that is not syncing properly. If needed, use File > Save As and choose Word Document (.docx) and a supported cloud location.

4. Check for disk or temporary file issues If saving intermittently fails with disk-related messages (for example, serious disk error or problems creating AutoRecover files), it can be due to temporary file handling during save. In that case:
5. Install the latest Office for Mac updates:
   • Open any Office app (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, or Outlook).
   • On the Help menu, select Check for Updates.
   • Set it to check Automatically, then select Check for Updates and install any available updates.
6. After updating, restart the Mac and test saving again.
7. Verify AutoRecover settings (to reduce data loss when saving fails) AutoRecover does not replace manual saving, but it can help when saving stops unexpectedly:
8. In Word, go to Word > Preferences.
9. Under Output and Sharing, select Save.
10. Make sure Save AutoRecover info is checked.
11. Set Save every to a small interval (for example, a few minutes).

If, after these steps, Word still stops saving and forces new versions, test by saving a new document to a completely different folder (for example, the local Documents folder instead of OneDrive). If saving works reliably there, the issue is likely with the original folder path (often OneDrive’s moved location) and re-saving to the correct path should resolve it.

---

References:

• Save a file in Office for Mac
• Missing files and autosave issues with OneDrive on macOS
• What is AutoSave?
• There is a serious disk error on when attempting to save, copy and paste or create auto recovery files in Office for Mac