12 Tips to Get the Most Out of Microsoft Word on Your Mac

Microsoft Word is not a built-in feature on Apple computers, unlike Windows. On Windows, it is free to use, and you don’t need a license. On a Mac, you have to purchase a subscription to Microsoft Office to use Word.

While most people prefer using the online version of Google Docs, some companies need their data to stay local instead of Google’s servers. Word is also handy if you are in a remote area with limited internet connectivity.

So, if you are using Word on your Mac, here is how you can get the most out of it – 

Tip #1: Explore Tell Me 

Tell Me is a great feature that basically acts as your personal concierge. If you are not sure about a feature, Tell Me can be used like a chatbot where you type in your query, and it shows you different help articles. 

Tip #2: Update the software

Running the latest Word version means not missing out on new features. Now, as for how to update microsoft office on mac, it is pretty simple. You can enable the auto-update or use tools like CleanMyMac X Updater to keep track of macOS software updates.

Tip #3: Use the trackpad clicks

When using Word, there are certain shortcuts you can use when you want to select text. If you click once, the cursor appears in a certain block. 

Click twice, and you can select a word and thrice to select the entire paragraph.

This works on Google Docs as well, so if you have been using Docs, it is not a hard transition to make. 

Tip #4: Remove the formatting

When writing an article, you might need to refer to a lot of different websites. One thing that people do is paste sections of the article they want to refer from and use them while writing. But it can be quite disconcerting when you have different colors, fonts, font sizes all swirling around in the same document.

To avoid this, remove all the formatting. You can do this by clicking on the ‘Remove formatting tool’ or selecting a text and then going into the Edit option to ‘Clear Formatting.’

Tip #5: Get data from a physical source to appear on Mac

If you come across print collateral that you need to input in your Word document, you can use the ‘Data from Picture’ tool. If you have an iPhone, take a picture of the data, use OCR, and voila – your data will be placed where the cursor last was. 

Tip #6: Learn ‘Find and Replace’

Most people already know how to Find and Replace a letter or a word, but there are some powerful tips that you can use apart from this –

• Remove additional line spaces with this – Type ^p^p in the Find section and ^p in the Replace section. 
• Look for digits that have been inputted wrong – Enter ^# In the Find field, and you can scroll through every number in the document. 
• Check for comments – Type ^a, and you can see all the comments on a doc. 

Tip #7: Navigate to the last location of the cursor

Shift + F5 will take you where your cursor last was. This is useful if you have been scrolling through a doc and want to go back to typing. 

Tip #8: Use shortcut for hyperlinks

If you want to hyperlink a text, select a word, phrases, or sentence and press Command + K. This will open up a view where you can insert your link. 

Tip #9: Try the Thesaurus

If you need to look up synonyms or antonyms of a word, you can use the in-built Thesaurus. Press Command and select a word you need this tool for and choose a replacement from the suggested list. 

Tip #10: Track edits

You can track all the changes to a Word doc by clicking on the Review Tab and then ‘Track Changes.’ Any changes made or suggested will appear here. 

Keep in mind that if a file was created on Google Docs, none of the comments or suggestions would make their way to Microsoft Word and vice versa. When it comes to collaboration, Google Docs is better than Word in most regards.

Tip #11: Zoom in to your document

You can use zoom into your Word doc to reduce the strain on your eye. To do this, you can go to Windows and then choose ‘Zoom’ and find a setting that appeals to you. 

Tip #12: Set a default font

Word has a default font which is Calibri. This means every time you open a new Word doc, Calibri is chosen as the preferred font. If you don’t like it, you can change the default font to the one you prefer. Go to Format and then Font and set a new default font.

All in all

There you have it. You can use these tips to master Word.

Using Word on Mac is pretty similar to how you would use it on Windows except for the difference in Windows controls and some keyboard shortcuts on Mac that make it easier to use the computer.

But if you are looking for versatility and real-time collaboration and privacy isn’t a concern, Google Docs is the way to go.