Turning a Publisher file into a Word document is the most common thing people try, and the most common thing they regret. It can be done, but understanding why it goes wrong will save you an afternoon of nudging text boxes around.
Word is a word processor: text flows from one page to the next, and pictures sit inside that flow. Publisher is a page-layout program: every text box, picture and shape is pinned to an exact spot on the page, often overlapping. When a layout is forced into Word, every pinned element has to become something Word understands, such as a floating text box, a picture wrapped in text or a table. Usually some of them land in the wrong place, overlap, or push others onto a new page.
For a single-column letter, the result is fine. For a newsletter with columns, a flyer with a background image, or a certificate with a decorative border, it usually isn't.
There's no way to open a .pub file in Word itself, because Word doesn't read the format. And since Microsoft removed Publisher from Microsoft 365 on 1 October 2026, the routes that relied on Publisher being installed are gone for most people too.
If the goal is to keep the document rather than rewrite it in Word, two other formats serve you better. A PDF preserves exactly how it looks, for reading, printing and archiving. An ODG file, saved from LibreOffice Draw, keeps the layout editable: text boxes stay where they were, and you can change the words, swap a photo or update a date without rebuilding anything.
If you only need the words, to reuse a paragraph in a new document, copy the text out of the PDF or the ODG and paste it into Word. That's often quicker than converting the whole file.
Word makes sense when the document is mostly text and you'll keep rewriting it: a simple one-column newsletter, a letter on letterhead, a form people fill in. If the design was the point, as with a poster, a programme or a certificate, leave it as a layout.
Everything above works one file at a time, which is the right answer for a handful. For an archive, PubRevive converts everything at once: every file comes back as a PDF and an editable ODG copy, your folders stay as they were, and a report shows exactly what converted.
Upload the folder and you'll see page one of one of your files rescued, with the exact price, before you pay anything. If fewer than 80% of your files rescue, you get a full refund.
Yes. Word can open a PDF and convert it into an editable document. Results depend on how complex the layout is; text-heavy pages convert best.
Only if the computer has them. Publisher files commonly use Calibri and Cambria; if they're missing, Word substitutes others and text reflows.
It's the OpenDocument drawing format used by LibreOffice Draw. It keeps a page layout editable, and LibreOffice is free on Windows, Mac and Linux.
Rarely. Most archives only need to be readable and printable, which PDFs do perfectly. Convert the few you still edit, and keep editable ODG copies of the rest just in case.
Last updated 16 October 2026.