WORD DOCUMENT AUTOMATICALLY OPENS

Question

WHEN I FIRST SIGN IN ON MY PC A BLANK WORD DOCUMENT POPS UP AND I DONT WANT IT TO

Answer 1

It is usual to have a blank document open when you start Word unless you have the backstage open when you start (I start with a blank document). So, this has to do with why is Word automatically starting when you start your computer. It has nothing to do with any Auto macros in Word. It has nothing to do with any Word Add-Ins.

Your answer may vary depending on the version of Windows you are using.

In Windows 11, I would investigate my Startup Apps settings.

Since this is more a Windows question than a Word question, you might get better help asking in a Windows forum.

Answer 2

If you make sure that Word is closed when you shut down your PC (or put it to sleep), you shouldn't see Word as you restart (or awake) your PC the next time.

Answer 3

A blank Word document opening automatically at sign-in is usually caused by either Windows starting a folder (like Documents) at logon, or Word being triggered by an add-in/macro or startup setting.

Try these steps in order:

1. Check that Windows is not opening Documents at startup If a Documents folder opens at logon, Word may be starting from there.
   1. Press Windows + R, type regedit, and select OK.
   2. Navigate to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon
   3. In the right pane, find the value Userinit.
   4. It must be exactly: C:\WINDOWS\system32\userinit.exe, (including the comma at the end).
   5. If it is different, right-click Userinit > Modify, set it to C:\WINDOWS\system32\userinit.exe, and select OK.
   6. Close Registry Editor and restart the PC.
2. Check for Word auto macros that run at startup Auto macros can open documents automatically when Word starts.
   1. Start Word while holding the CTRL key to open it in Safe Mode (this prevents auto macros and add-ins from running).
   2. In Word, use the Search box at the top and type Macros, then choose View macros.
   3. In the Macros dialog, look for any macros whose names start with Auto (for example, AutoExec, AutoNew, AutoOpen).
   4. Select any such macro and choose Delete if it is not needed.
   5. If needed, change the Macros in dropdown to other templates to see where the macro is stored and remove it from that template.
3. Check Word add-ins Some add-ins can open a document on startup.
   1. In Word, go to File > Options > Add-ins.
   2. At the bottom, next to Manage, choose COM Add-ins and select Go.
   3. Clear all checkboxes to temporarily disable all COM add-ins and select OK.
   4. Restart Word normally and sign out/in to Windows to see if the blank document still appears.
   5. If the issue is gone, re-enable add-ins one by one to find the one causing it.
4. Turn off the Office Start screen (if what appears is the Word start screen) If what is seen is the Word Start screen rather than a true blank document:
   1. Open Word.
   2. Go to File > Options.
   3. Under Start up options, clear Show the Start screen when this application starts.
   4. Close Word and sign out/in again.

If the behavior started after a crash or reinstall and only affects Word, also consider running an Online Repair of Office as described in the Office repair article if the above steps do not resolve it.

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References:

• My Documents open at startup
• Turn off the Start screen
• You are prompted to save the changes to the Normal.dotm template every time you quit Word
• How to fix my MS Word? - Microsoft Q&A