Quick answer: turn the .pub file into a PDF, then open the PDF in Word, which converts it to an editable document. Without Publisher, make the PDF in Free Pub Editor (free, in your browser). Simple, text-heavy pages convert well; busy newsletters and posters often need tidying.
Can a .pub file be opened directly in Word?
No. Word has no reader for Publisher's format. Microsoft's own instructions go through PDF: save the publication as a PDF, then in Word choose File → Open and pick the PDF (Microsoft Support). All three methods below use some version of that route.
Method 1: If you still have Publisher
- Open the publication in Publisher.
- Choose File → Save as, pick a location, and set the file type to PDF.
- Open Word, choose File → Open, and select the PDF. Word converts it.
- Save the result as a Word document (.docx).
This is Microsoft's recommended method. Copies of Publisher bought outright still run, according to Microsoft, but Microsoft 365 subscribers no longer have it.
Method 2: Without Publisher, using Free Pub Editor
- Open Free Pub Editor and click Open to choose your .pub file. It's read in your browser, not uploaded.
- Make any edits you want first. It's often easier to fix text here, while the layout is intact.
- Click Export PDF. In the print window choose Save as PDF, margins None, and turn on Background graphics.
- Open the PDF in Word (File → Open) and save it as .docx.
To be clear: Free Pub Editor exports PDF and its own editable .fpe format. It doesn't write DOCX files itself.
Method 3: Using LibreOffice
LibreOffice opens .pub files in its Draw app. Draw's export formats include PDF and drawing formats, but not Word (LibreOffice Help), so the route is the same: open the .pub in Draw, export a PDF, and open that PDF in Word. It's free but needs a large desktop install. In our tests so far, Draw's rendering of four sample files was close, though it broke one calendar's tab-stop columns into one letter per line.
What breaks when a publication becomes a Word document?
Publisher and Word think about pages differently. Publisher places boxes anywhere; Word flows text down the page. Microsoft's help for opening PDFs in Word is honest about the result: conversion "works best with files that are mostly text", and if a page is mostly graphics "the whole page might show up as an image" (Microsoft Support). Microsoft also lists page colours and borders and some font effects among the things that don't convert cleanly.
| In the .pub file | Usually after conversion |
|---|---|
| A single column of text (a letter, a notice) | Converts well |
| Multi-column newsletter | Columns and text boxes may shift or split |
| Photos with captions | Pictures kept; captions may move |
| Page backgrounds and borders | Often lost or changed |
| Poster with text over pictures | May become one picture with no editable text |
| Tables | Usually kept; spacing may change |
Do you really need Word?
It depends what you want the file for:
- To print or share it as it is: a PDF is better. It looks the same everywhere. See converting .pub to PDF.
- To update it now and then: keep editing the .pub in Free Pub Editor and save an editable copy. The layout stays intact.
- To reuse the words somewhere else: Word is ideal. You can also copy the text straight out of the editor.
- Because your organisation is standardising on Microsoft 365: convert, then rebuild the layout using Word's own columns and text boxes. Expect some work for newsletters.
For the bigger picture, see what replaced Microsoft Publisher.