Repair an Office application

If an Office application such as Word or Excel isn't working correctly, sometimes restarting it will fix the problem. If that doesn't work, you can try repairing it. When you're done, you might need to restart your computer.

Repair Office from the Control Panel

The steps to access the repair tool vary depending on your operating system.

Choose your operating system from the tabs below:

Windows 10 Windows 8 or 8.1 Windows 7 or Vista

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1. Right-click the Start button (lower-left corner), and select Apps and Features on the pop-up menu.

   

2. Select the Microsoft Office product you want to repair, and select Modify.

   Note: This will repair the entire Office suite even if it's just one application you want to repair such as Word or Excel. If you have a standalone app installed, then search for that application by name.

3. Depending if your copy of Office is Click-to-run or MSI-based install, do the following.

   Click-to-run

   In How would you like to repair your Office Programs, select Online Repair to make sure everything gets fixed, and then select Repair. (The faster Quick Repair option is also available, but it only detects and then replaces corrupted files.)

   MSI-based

   In Change your installation, select Repair and then click Continue.

4. Follow the instructions on the screen to complete the repair.

1. Right-click the Start button (lower-left corner), and select Control Panel from the pop-up menu.

   

2. From Category view, under Programs, select Uninstall a program.

3. Right-click the Microsoft Office product you want to repair, and from the drop-down, select Change.

   Note: If you have a suite such as Office 365 Home, or Office Home and Student 2013 or 2016, search for the suite name, even if it's just a particular application you want to repair such as Word or Excel. If you have a standalone application such as Word or Excel, search for the application name.

4. Depending if your copy of Office is Click-to-run or an MSI-based install, do the following for your Office installation type:

   Click-to-Run installation type:

   In How would you like to repair your Office Programs, select Online Repair to make sure everything gets fixed, and then select Repair. (The faster Quick Repair option is also available, but it only detects and then replaces corrupted files.)

   MSI-based installation type:

   In Change your installation, select Repair and then click Continue.

5. Follow the remaining instructions on the screen to complete the repair.

1. Click the Start button > Control Panel.

2. From Category view, under Programs, select Uninstall a program.

3. Click the Office product you want to repair, and then click Change.

   Note: If you have a suite such as Office 365 Home, or Office Home and Student 2013 or 2016, search for the suite name, even if it's just a particular application you want to repair such as Word or Excel. If you have a standalone application such as Word or Excel, search for the application name.

4. Depending if your copy of Office is Click-to-run or an MSI-based install, do the following for your Office installation type:

   Click-to-Run installation type:

   In How would you like to repair your Office Programs, select Online Repair to make sure everything gets fixed, and then select Repair. (The faster Quick Repair option is also available, but it only detects and then replaces corrupted files.)

   MSI-based installation type:

   In Change your installation, select Repair and then click Continue.

5. Follow the remaining instructions on the screen to complete the repair.

Running Repair didn't help. Now what?

Use this easy fix tool to completely uninstall Office.

1. Click this easy fix button to uninstall Office.

   

2. For the remaining steps showing how to save and use the easy fix, select your browser from the drop-down list below

   Select your browser

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   • Select your browser
   • Edge or Internet Explorer
   • Chrome
   • Firefox

   1. At the bottom of the browser window, select Open to open the O15CTRRemove.diagcab file.

      

      If the file doesn't open automatically, choose Save > Open Folder, and then double-click the file (it should start with "O15CTRRemove") to run the easy fix tool.

   2. The Uninstall Microsoft Office wizard launches. Select Next and follow the prompts.

   3. When you see the Uninstallation successful screen, follow the prompt to restart your computer for the changes to take effect. Select Next.

   4. After restarting your computer, you can try installing Office again.

   1. In the lower-lower left corner select the o15CTRRemove file and from the drop down, select Show in folder.

      

      Double-click the download, o15CTRRemove to run the easy fix tool.

   2. The Uninstall Microsoft Office wizard launches. Select Next and follow the prompts.

   3. When you see the Uninstallation successful screen, follow the prompt to restart your computer for the changes to take effect. Select Next.

   4. After restarting your computer, you can try installing Office again.

   1. Select Save File, and then OK.

      

      In the upper-right browser window, select Show all downloads. In the Library, select Downloads > O15CTRRemove.diagcab, and then select the folder icon. Double-click the O15CTRRemove.diagcab.

   2. The Uninstall Microsoft Office wizard launches. Select Next and follow the prompts.

   3. When you see the Uninstallation successful screen, follow the prompt to restart your computer for the changes to take effect. Select Next.

   4. After restarting your computer, you can try installing Office again.

Reinstall Office

To reinstall Office 365 or Office 2016, follow the steps in Download and install or reinstall Office on your PC or Mac.

To reinstall Office 2013, see Download and install or reinstall Office 2013 on a PC.

Is my Office Click-to-Run or MSI-based?

1. Open an Office application, such as Outlook or Word.

2. Go to File > Account or Office Account.

3. If you see an "Update Options" item, you have a Click-to-Run installation. If you don't see the "Update Options" item, you have an MSI-based install.