Save a document in Word

You can use the Save and Save As commands to store your work, and you can adjust the settings that Microsoft Word uses to save your documents.

For example, if the document is for your own use and you never expect to open it in an earlier version of Microsoft Word, you can use the Save command.

If you want to share your document with people who use software other than Microsoft Word 2010 or Microsoft Office Word 2007, or if you plan to open the document on another computer, you need to choose how and where you want to save the document.

Note: If you commonly save documents in a particular place or format, you can adjust settings so that Word defaults to these choices.

Important: If you intend to share the document with other readers, click the File tab, click Check for Issues next to Prepare for Sharing, and then click Inspect Document before you save the document. The Inspect Document option provides commands that enhance the privacy, security, and authenticity of your document.

What do you want to do?

Save a document for the first time

Save an existing document as a new document (Save As)

Save a document on a CD

Save a document on a USB memory device

Save a document in a location that can be accessed remotely

Save a document so that it can be opened in an earlier version of Word

Save a document in alternative file formats

Adjust settings for saving documents

Save a document for the first time

1. On the Quick Access Toolbar, click Save , or press CTRL+S.

2. Type a name for the document, and then click Save.

   Word saves the document in a default location. To save the document in a different location, select another folder in the list of folders if your computer is running Windows 7, or in Favorite Links if your computer is running Windows Vista, or in the Save in list if your computer is running Microsoft Windows XP. If you want to change the default location where Word saves documents, adjust settings for saving documents.

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Save an existing document as a new document (Save As)

To prevent overwriting the original document, use the Save As command to create a new file as soon as you open the original document.

1. Open the document that you want to save as a new file.

2. Click the File tab.

3. Click Save As.

4. Type a name for the document, and then click Save.

   Word saves the document in a default location.

   To save the document in a different location, click another folder in the Save in list in the Save As dialog box. If you want to change the default location where Word saves documents, adjust settings for saving documents.

To make it easy to use one document as the basis for others, save the document where templates are stored. In the Save As dialog box, click Templates if your computer is running Windows Vista, or click Trusted Templates if your computer is running Windows XP, and then click Save. When you want to create a new document, in the New Document dialog box, double-click New from Existing.

Another way to use one document as the basis for others is to save it as a template.

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Save a document on a CD

1. Use the Save or Save As command to save the document to a folder that you can find easily.

2. Insert a blank, writable CD into the CD recorder. Use one of the following:

   • Recordable compact disc (CD-R)

   • Rewritable compact disc (CD-RW)

     With rewritable CDs, you can copy data to and erase data from the CD multiple times.

3. Click Start, and then do one of the following, depending on your computer's operating system:

   Windows 7

   1. Click Computer.

   2. In the list of folders, click the arrow next to Computer to expand the list of disk drives.

   3. Click the files or folders that you want to copy to the CD, and drag them to the CD recording drive in the list of folders.

      To select more than one file, hold down CTRL while you click the files that you want.

   4. In the Burn a disc dialog box, click either Like a USB Flash drive or With a CD/DVD player, depending on the CD format that you want to use. If you want help with this, click Which one should I choose?.

   5. Type a name for the CD in the Disc title box, and then click Next.

   6. Follow the instructions on your screen.

   Windows Vista

   1. Click Computer.

   2. Click Folders to expand the list of folders, and then click the arrow next to Computer to expand the list of disk drives.

   3. Click the files or folders that you want to copy to the CD, and drag them to the CD recording drive in the list of folders.

      To select more than one file, hold down CTRL while you click the files that you want.

   4. In the Burn a disc dialog box, click either Live File System or Mastered, depending on the CD format that you want to use. If you want help with this, click Which CD or DVD format should I choose?.

   5. Type a name for the CD in the Disc title box, and then click Next.

   6. Follow the instructions on your screen.

   Windows XP

   1. Click My Computer.

   2. On the View menu, point to Explorer Bar, and then click Folders.

   3. Click the files or folders that you want to copy to the CD, and drag them to the CD recording drive in the list of folders.

      To select more than one file, hold down CTRL while you click the files that you want.

   4. Double-click the CD recording drive. Windows XP displays a temporary area where the files are located before they are copied to the CD. Verify that the files and folders that you intend to copy to the CD appear under Files Ready to be Written to the CD.

   5. Under CD Writing Tasks, click Write these files to CD. Windows starts the CD Writing Wizard. Follow the instructions in the wizard.

• Do not try to copy more files to the CD than it will hold. Check the CD packaging to see the capacity of each CD. For files that are too large to fit on a CD, you can copy files to a recordable DVD (DVD-R or DVD+R) or rewritable DVD (DVD-RW or DVD+RW). However, Windows XP does not support copying to a DVD, so you must use DVD authoring software.

• Make sure that you have enough disk space on your hard disk to store the temporary files that are created during the CD-writing process. For a standard CD, Windows reserves up to 700 megabytes (MB) of the available free space. For a high-capacity CD, Windows reserves up to 1 gigabyte (GB) of the available free space.

• After you copy files or folders to the CD, you can view the CD to confirm that the files were copied.

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Save a document on a USB memory device

1. Insert the memory device into a USB port.

2. Click the File tab.

3. Click Save As.

4. Do one of the following:

   Windows 7

   1. Click Computer.

   2. Under Devices with Removable Storage, double-click the USB memory device.

   Windows Vista

   1. Click Computer.

   2. Under Devices with Removable Storage, double-click the USB memory device.

   Windows XP

   1. Click My Computer.

   2. Double-click the USB memory device.

5. In the File name box, type a name for the document.

6. Click Save.

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Save a document in a location that can be accessed remotely

You can save the document in a network folder or on a Web server.

Save a document in a network folder

1. Click the File tab.

2. Click Save As.

3. Locate the network folder.

4. If a network folder is mapped to your computer, in the list of locations, click Computer if your computer is running Windows 7 or Windows Vista, or click My Computer if your computer is running Windows XP, and then click the name of the folder.
   
   

   You can easily access a network folder by mapping it to your computer. If you don't already have a folder mapped, you can click Tools in the Save As dialog box, click Map Network Drive, and then follow the instructions in the Map Network Drive dialog box.

5. If you know the name and location of the shared network folder, type it in the File name box, starting with two backslashes, and then press ENTER.

6. Type a name for the document, and then click Save.

Save a document on a Web server

Windows 7

If you are saving the document in a SharePoint library, do the following:

1. Click the File tab.

2. Click Save & Send, and then click Save to SharePoint.

3. Find the SharePoint location to which you want to save, and click Save As.

4. In the Save As dialog box, click Save.

If you are saving the document to OneDrive, do the following:

1. Click the File tab, and then click Save & Send.

2. Click Save to Web.

3. Click Sign In, enter your Windows Live ID and password, and click OK.

   If you use Hotmail, Messenger, or Xbox Live, you already have a Windows Live ID. If you don't have one, click Sign up for OneDrive to create a new Windows Live ID.

4. Select a folder in OneDrive and click Save As.

5. Type a name for your file and click Save.

   The document is now saved in OneDrive. In OneDrive you can give people permission to view and edit the contents of your folders. When you want to share a document, you send a link to the folder.

Windows Vista

If you are saving the document in a document library on a Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 site, do the following:

1. Click the File tab.

2. Click Save As.

3. Locate the Web server.

4. In the File name box, type the URL of the site, and then press ENTER.

5. Double-click the name of the document library.

6. Type a name for the document, and then click Save.

If you are saving the document on a Web site on MSN, do the following:

1. In the File name box, type the URL of your MSN site, and then press ENTER.

2. Type your user name and password to log on to the site.

If you are saving the document in a File Transfer Protocol (FTP) location that you already configured, do the following:

1. Click the File tab.

2. Click Save As.

3. In the Save As dialog box, expand the Folders list, and click Computer.

4. Double-click the FTP location in the Network Location list.

   FTP is a way of opening and saving files on Web servers. If you know the name and log-on credentials for a server, you can add the server to your Network locations by right-clicking Computer and then clicking Add a Network Location in the Save As dialog box.

Windows XP

1. Click the File tab.

2. Click Save As.

3. Locate the Web server.

   • If you are saving the document in a document library on a Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 site, type the URL of the site in the File name box, and then press ENTER. Double-click the name of the document library.

   • If you are saving the document on a Web site on MSN, click My Network Places, and then double-click My Web Sites on MSN. Type your password if necessary, and then double-click the name of the site.

   • If you are saving the document in a File Transfer Protocol (FTP) location that you already configured, select FTP Locations in the Save in list, and then double-click the FTP location.

     FTP is a way of opening and saving files on Web servers. If you know the name and log-on credentials for a server, you can add the server to your FTP locations by clicking Add/Modify FTP Locations in the Save As dialog box.

4. Type a name for the document, and then click Save.

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Save a document so that it can be opened in an earlier version of Word

If you save your document in the default .docx file format, users of Microsoft Word 2003, Word 2002, and Word 2000 must install the Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 2007 File Formats to open the document. Alternatively, you can save the document in a format that can be opened directly in earlier versions of Word — but formatting and layout that depend on new features in Word 2010 might not be available in earlier versions. For more information on which features are available in earlier versions of Word, see Create a document to be used by previous versions of Word.

1. Click the File tab.

2. Click Save As.

3. In the File name box, type a name for the document, and then click Save

4. In the Save as type list, click Word 97-2003 Document. This changes the file format to .doc.

5. Type a name for the document, and then click Save.

If you frequently want to save a document in the Word 97-2003 Format, see Save documents in a previous file format by default.

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Save a document in alternative file formats

If you are creating a document for others you can make them readable and not editable, or you can make them readable and editable. If you want a document to be readable but not editable, save the document as a PDF or XPS file, or save it as a Web page. If you want your document to be readable and editable, but prefer a file format other than .docx or .doc, you can use formats such as, plain text (.txt), Rich Text Format (.rtf), OpenDocument Text (.odt) and Microsoft Works (.wps).

PDF and XPS    PDF and XPS are formats that people can read in widely available viewing software. These formats preserve the page layout of the document.

Web pages    Web pages are displayed in a Web browser. This format does not preserve the page layout of your document. As someone resizes the browser window, the layout of the document changes. You can save the document as a conventional Web page (HTML format) or as a single-file Web page (MHTML format). With HTML format, any supporting files (such as images) are stored in a separate folder that is associated with the document. With MHTML format, all supporting files are stored together with the document in one file. The MHTML format is supported by Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0.

You can save a document in other formats that can be opened by a number of text editing programs. Among these formats are plain text (.txt), Rich Text Format (.rtf), OpenDocument Text (.odt) and Microsoft Works (.wps). However, saving an Office Word 2007 or later document in these formats does not reliably preserve the formatting, layout, or other features of the document. Use these formats only if you don't mind losing these aspects of your document. You can choose these formats in the Save as type list in the Save As dialog box.

Save a document as a PDF or XPS file

1. Click the File tab.

2. Click Save As.

3. In the File name box, type a name for the file.

4. In the Save as type list, select PDF or XPS Document.

5. If the document is for viewing online only, you can compress the file size by clicking Minimum size (publishing online) next to Optimize for.

6. If you want to save just a portion of the document, if you want to include revision marks or document properties, or if you want to automatically create hyperlinks to headings or bookmarks in the document, click Options, and then click the options that you want to use.

7. Click Save.

Save a document as a Web page

1. Click the File tab.

2. Click Save As.

3. If you are publishing the document to a Web server, browse to the server name, and click it (do not double-click it).

4. In the File name box, type a name for the file.

5. In the Save as type box, click Web Page or Singe File Web Page.

   If you save the document as a Web page (HTML format) and later want to move it or send it as an e-mail message attachment, you must remember to include the folder that contains any supporting files. This folder has the same name as the file name of the document. If you save the document as a Single File Web Page file, all the information is contained in the document.

6. Click Save.

Save a document in the OpenDocument Text format

1. Click the File tab.

2. Click Save As.

3. In the File name box, type a name for the file.

4. In the Save as type box, click OpenDocument Text.

   If you want to retain a version of the file as a Word document, you must save it as a Word document (for example, .docx file format) before you close Word.

5. Click Save.

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Adjust settings for saving documents

1. Click the File tab.

2. Under Help, click Options.

3. Click Save.

4. In the Save files in this format box, click the file format that you want to use.

5. Next to the Default file location box, click Browse, and then click the folder where you want to save your files.

   These options control the default behavior the first time that you use the Open, Save, or Save As command when you start Word. Whenever you save a document, you can override these settings by specifying a different location or format in the Open, Save, or Save As dialog box.

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