Recover a Word or Excel file you did not save

Get back work after a crash, power cut or accidental close.

Updated September 21, 2026

  1. Reopen the program. A Document Recovery pane often appears on the left. Choose the newest version and save it right away.
  2. If it did not appear, in Word select File, then Info, then Manage Document, then Recover Unsaved Documents.
  3. In Excel, select File, then Info, then Manage Workbook, then Recover Unsaved Workbooks.
  4. Open the file you find, then use Save As to keep it in a safe place.
Good to know

To lose less next time, save files in OneDrive. Word and Excel then save your changes automatically.