Word Keeps Crashing on macOS Sonoma/Ventura [8 Tested Methods]

This article introduces 8 practical ways to fix Word keeps crashing on Mac, including checking Word Preferences and hard drive name, saving the Word documents to another location, clearing the AutoRecovery folder, etc.

Table of Contents

In the workplace, you must be familiar with the use of Microsoft Word; many jobs require skilled using Word documents. But many Mac users have encountered such a situation that Word keeps crashing on Mac:

I tried to install Microsoft Office version 16.58 both from the website and App Store several times and keep them up to date using Microsoft AutoUpdate Tool. All other tools such as PowerPoint and Excel work fine. But only Word crashes every time I tried to open it. Does anyone have similar problem recently? From Microsoft Community

Don't worry! This passage will introduce 8 practical ways to solve this issue on your MacBook Pro and Air:

⚙️Check Word Preferences

Wrong settings can also cause constant Word file crashes, and checking the Word Preferences for errors is the easiest and most straightforward preferred solution.

💽Check Hard Drive Name

Fix 2 may sound strange, but it does work in the case of Word keep crashing. You might consider renaming the drive if you have verified that the Word program settings are fine.

📁Save to Another Location

This is the most simple solution - store your documents on a different partition of your Mac hard drive to avoid Word crashing continuously due to the failure of a section on your storage drive.

🗑️Clear AutoRecovery Folder

Deleting auto-saved files of Word documents can also help with this issue, but you need to be careful not to delete essential files to avoid file corruption or data loss.

🧑‍🔧Other Useful Fixes

Update Microsoft Word, create a new user account, run the Word app in Mac Safe Mode, and use Disk Utility can also fix the Word keeps crashing on your Mac.

Why Word keeps crashing on Mac? The main causes leading to Word documents crashing could be virus attacks, system errors, corrupted Word documents, or installing a pirated version of Microsoft Word.

What's more, suppose the crash occurs only when you try to save the Word document on your Mac; the explanation may be hard drive issues on your Mac. Before trying to fix the Word keeping crash on Mac, you should first repair the corrupted Word document to avoid losing data.

Recover Crashed Word Documents on MacBook Pro/Air

Making changes on the Word documents may be unsaved because Word keeps crashing on Mac. In this case, recovering the unsaved Word document could be troublesome unless professional data recovery software like EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac could be used for help.

With the trusted EaseUS file recovery tool, you can recover unsaved Word document on Mac quickly with a few clicks. To easily understand how to use the powerful software to recover unsaved Word files, you can refer to the following steps:

Note: You can create a backup by clicking the "Disk Backup" on the left first. When the disk is damaged or the unsaved document on the disk is accidentally deleted or lost, you can get the data back from the backup image.

Step 1. Select the disk

Launch EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac, hover the mouse over the device where you lost an unsaved file, and click "Search for lost files".

select a location and scan for unsaved documents

Step 2. Choose unsaved documents

After the scan, click "Type", and expand "Unsaved Documents". Click the exact file type - Word, Excel, Powerpoint, Keynote, Pages, or Numbers you lost without saving.

choose the unsaved documents

Step 3. Preview and recover unsaved files

Double-click to preview your unsaved file, select the right version and click "Recover" to save the file to another secure location on Mac.

recover unsaved documents on Mac

Suppose a particular Microsoft Word document keeps closing after opening on your Mac; it could be corrupted. The EaseUS file recovery tool can help you open and repair corrupted files on Mac to return your essential Word documents.

How to Fix Word Keeps Crashing on macOS Sonoma/Ventura

As we mentioned, Word document corruption on macOS Sonoma/Ventura can also cause the crash or be closed immediately upon opening.

word keeps crashing on Mac

If the exception still exists when you have fixed and recovered the corrupted Word file using the text recovery converter on Mac, you can try the following 8 effective solutions.

Fix 1. Check the Word Preferences

The wrong settings can also cause Word keeping crash on your Mac. Follow the steps below to check the Word Preferences:

Step 1. Go to "Word > Preferences" and click on the "File Locations" icon.

Step 2. Click on "User Templates > Reset". Or click on "Modify" to view it.

Step 3. Select the "Normal" file, cut and paste it to any other locations, or move to Trash shortcut on Mac.

Step 4. Restart Microsoft Word and check if it fixes the crashing issue on your Mac.

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Fix 2. Check the Hard Drive Name

As Mac has a flexible way to name its hard drives compared with Windows, a faulty hard drive name on Mac can cause a malfunction of Word.

So you might check the hard drive name to fix the Word crashing issue. Here are steps to check the hard drive name and make it compatible with Word:

Step 1. Click on the Apple logo and go to "Applications > Disk Utility".

Step 2. Select your Mac's hard drive and view its details on the right side.

Step 3. Ensure the hard drive name should begin with a character, which can have numbers but shouldn't have any special character.

Step 4. Rename the hard drive to make it compatible with Word on Mac if needed.

Step 5. Restart your Mac and access Microsoft Word again.

 
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Fix 3. Save the Word Document to Another Location

In addition to incorrect settings and unsuitable hard drive names, Mac storage may also have problems, causing Word to crash.

If a specific partition or sector on your Mac hard drive is corrupted, then you should try saving your Word documents elsewhere to avoid Word crashes on Mac and prevent the loss of essential files.

Fix 4. Clear the AutoRecovery Folder

Microsoft Word saves the running documents in the background using its auto-save feature, allowing users to return the Word document when it closes unexpectedly.

Therefore, clearing the AutoRecovery folder can fix the Word crash caused by the faulty application itself. Follow the steps below:

Step 1. Open "Finder" on your Mac, and click "Go > Go to Folder".

Step 2. Copy and paste the path on your Mac: ~/Library/Containers/com.microsoft.Word/Data/Library/Preferences/AutoRecovery/.

Step 3. Click "Go" to open the AutoRecovery folder, and delete the auto-saved files in the folder.

 
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Fix 5. Update Microsoft Word on MacBook Pro/Air

The old version of Microsoft Word can be one of the possible causes of the crashing issue on Mac. To update your Microsoft Word, follow the steps below:

Step 1. Launch the Word application on your Mac, and click "Help > Check for Updates" in the menu.

Step 2. Enable the automatic update option, and click "Check for Updates" again.

Step 3. Select the recently available updates and click "Install" to continue.

Step 4. Restart Microsoft Word after installation of the stable version.

Fix 6. Create Another User Account on Mac

A Mac account might sometimes be blocked from using some applications or features. In this case, it's suggested that you create another account on your Mac. Refer to the following:

Step 1. Go to the Apple icon and click "System Preferences".

Step 2. Click "Users & Groups", enter your administrator password to proceed, and click on the "+" icon to add a new user account.

Fix 7. Run Word in Mac Safe Mode

You can boot in Mac Safe Mode to check if there's a problem with the Microsoft Word program or your system. Follow the steps below:

Step 1. Shut down your Mac.

Step 2. Hit and hold the power button and wait for the startup options.

Step 3. Hit the "Shift" key and click "Continue" to log in to Safe Mode.

Step 4. Launch Microsoft Word to check if it works properly.

Fix 8. Run Disk Utility to Repair Crashed Word

Repairing the disk takes much time, but it can keep your disk secure. You can follow the steps below to fix the Word crashing issue using Disk Utility:

Step 1. Launch "Disk Utility".

Step 2. Select "Macintosh HD" and click "First Aid".

Step 3. Confirm again when the system prompts.

Step 4. Wait for the process complete, and restart your Mac.

 
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Tips to Prevent Word from Crashing on Mac

Word keeps crashing on your Mac, bringing trouble, slowing your workflow, and even losing data. To avoid crashes in Word, you can read the tips below to keep your Word application in a healthy condition.

  • Refresh the Word application on your system frequently.
  • Don't turn off your Mac when Word is running in the background.
  • Don't interrupt a Word file suddenly.
  • Install Word on the primary hard drive or Mac startup disk, which is usually referred to as Macintosh HD.
  • Download the Word application from Microsoft's official website.

Conclusion

This article introduces 8 practical ways to fix Word keeps crashing on Mac, including checking Word Preferences and hard drive name, saving the Word documents to another location, clearing the AutoRecovery folder, updating Microsoft Word, creating a new Mac user account, running in Mac Safe Mode, and using Disk Utility.

The crash Word documents may cause data loss; in this case, you can install EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard for Mac to recover the corrupted/unsaved/lost/deleted Word files on your Mac.

Word Keeps Crashing on Mac FAQs

Here are some questions people also ask when they search for Word keeps crashing on Mac:

1. How do I fix Microsoft Word from crashing on my Mac?

Here are 8 practical methods to fix the Word keeps crashing issue:

  • Check Word Preferences.
  • Check the hard drive name.
  • Save the Word documents to another location on your Mac.
  • Clear the AutoRecovery folder.
  • Update Microsoft Word application.
  • Create a new Mac user account.
  • Run the Word application in Mac Safe Mode.
  • Use Disk Utility to fix Word keeps crashing.

2. Why does my Microsoft Word keep crashing?

The main causes leading to Word documents crashing could be virus attacks, system errors, corrupted Word documents, or installing a pirated version of Microsoft Word.

What's more, suppose the crash occurs only when you try to save the Word document on your Mac; the explanation may be hard drive issues on your Mac.

3. How to open corrupted Word files?

Follow the steps below to open and repair the corrupted Word files using the 'Recover Text from Any File' feature on your Mac.

Step 1. Launch the Word on Mac. In the main menu, click on "File > Open".

Step 2. Find the drop-down menu titled Enable(Show). Select the option "Recover Text from Any File".

Step 3. Navigate to your corrupted Word file. Follow on-screen instructions to complete the recovery process.

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Updated by Brithny

Brithny is a technology enthusiast, aiming to make readers' tech lives easy and enjoyable. She loves exploring new technologies and writing technical how-to tips. In her spare time, she loves sharing things about her game experience on Facebook or Twitter.

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