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Word Document Won't Open or Is Corrupted

Intermediate Word Errors & Fixes Applies to: Windows 7, Windows 10, Windows 11

"Word found unreadable content" or the document shows a corruption warning instead of opening.

Before you start: save any open work and note down what you were doing when the problem started — that context helps if you need to search further or ask for help.
  1. When the "unreadable content" prompt appears, click Yes to let Word attempt its own repair — this recovers the document successfully more often than people expect.
  2. If that fails, open Word first, then File > Open > browse to the file > click the dropdown next to the Open button > choose "Open and Repair."
  3. Check for a recent AutoRecover version: File > Info > Manage Document, which lists any auto-saved versions Word kept before the corruption.
  4. If you have OneDrive or SharePoint version history enabled, check for a previous, uncorrupted version of the file there.
  5. As a last resort, try opening the file in Word for the web, Google Docs, or LibreOffice, which sometimes reads past corruption that desktop Word refuses to open.
Still not fixed? Send us the details and we'll help you dig further, or browse related guides in Word Errors & Fixes.

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the difference between "Open and Repair" and just opening the file normally?
Open and Repair specifically scans for and attempts to fix structural damage in the file before opening it, while a normal open just tries to load it as-is — which is why it succeeds in some cases where a regular open fails entirely.
Should I try to fix the original file, or restore from a backup instead?
If you have a recent backup or OneDrive version history, restoring from that is often faster and more reliable than repairing a corrupted file, especially if the corruption is severe.

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