complete failure of Microsoft word

Microsoft 365 is compatible with supported versions of Windows 10 and Windows 11. A complete failure of Word after install is usually caused by a damaged Office installation, not by general incompatibility.

Use these steps on the Windows PC to fix it:

1. Completely uninstall Microsoft 365/Office
   Use the official uninstall troubleshooter:
   1. Select the Uninstall button in this article: Troubleshoot installing Office. It opens the Microsoft Support and Recovery Assistant uninstall tool.
   2. When prompted, choose Open if the browser asks to open Get Help.
   3. Follow the prompts to remove Microsoft 365/Office completely.
   4. Restart the computer when the tool asks.
   Important notes from Microsoft:
   • The uninstall troubleshooter works for Microsoft 365, Office 2021, Office 2019, and Office 2016.
   • It cannot uninstall Office 2024.
   • It requires Windows 10 or higher.
   If the troubleshooter does not fully remove Office, use the manual removal steps in manually uninstall Office.
2. Reinstall Microsoft 365/Office
   After the uninstall and restart:
   1. Go to the installation instructions in Download and install or reinstall Microsoft 365 or Office 2024 on a PC or Mac.
   2. Sign in with the Microsoft account that owns the Microsoft 365 subscription or Office license.
   3. Download and run the installer, then let it complete.
   4. After install, start Word and sign in if prompted so it can activate.
3. If Word still will not start or shows errors
   If, after a clean reinstall, Word or other apps show errors such as "stopped working" or "Something went wrong":
   • Follow the repair/uninstall/reinstall guidance in:
     • I get a "stopped working" error when I start Office applications on my PC
     • "Something went wrong" error when you try to start a Microsoft 365 app
4. Check Windows version support
   Ensure the PC is running a supported Windows version (Windows 10 or Windows 11). The article What Windows end of support means for Office and Microsoft 365 shows which Office versions are supported on which Windows versions. If Windows itself is out of support, Office may not work reliably.

If, after a full uninstall with the troubleshooter and a reinstall following the official steps, Word still fails to open, contacting Microsoft Support is recommended, as shown in the Office 2021 case where support used a deeper removal tool to fix a corrupted installation.

References:

• Troubleshoot installing Office
• Error code 0-1011, 30088-1015, or 30183-1011 when installing Office
• "...Another installation is in progress..." or error code 0-1018, 17003-2031, or 2035-0 when installing Office
• "Something went wrong" error when you try to start a Microsoft 365 app
• I get a "stopped working" error when I start Office applications on my PC
• Microsoft 365 subscription features aren't available in Office apps
• What Windows end of support means for Office and Microsoft 365
• How can I get office 365 to work? - Microsoft Q&A
• we are sorry, but word has run into an error that is preventing it from working correctly. Word will need to be closed as a result. Would you like us to repair now? - Microsoft Q&A
• Office 2021 desktop apps fail to open, cannot restore or uninstall - Microsoft Q&A
• Can't type in Word documents - Microsoft Q&A
• Ofiice 365 Winword.exe issue at startup Win11 Home 25H2 64 bits - Microsoft Q&A