Microsoft Publisher Is Retired: How to Save Your Files -

Quick answer: Microsoft Publisher is being retired. Microsoft says Microsoft 365 subscribers lost access to it on 1 October 2026, and support for the one-time-purchase versions ends on 13 October 2026. If you still have .pub files, save them as PDFs now and rebuild anything you need to keep editing in Word, PowerPoint or a free layout app.

Publisher has been part of Microsoft Office since 1991, and plenty of schools, churches, clubs and small shops still use it for flyers, newsletters and labels. Microsoft first announced the retirement in February 2024, but the deadline only became real this month.

Here’s exactly what has changed, who it affects, and the quickest way to rescue your files.

What is happening to Microsoft Publisher?

According to Microsoft’s official support page, “In October 2026, Microsoft Publisher will reach its end of life.” After that, it “will no longer be included in Microsoft 365 and existing on-premises suites will no longer be supported.”

There are two dates to know:

1 October 2026: Microsoft 365 subscribers can no longer access Publisher.
13 October 2026: support ends for the perpetual (one-time purchase) versions of Office that included Publisher.

Microsoft’s reasoning, as reported by Petri, is that “most of the Publisher features can already be found in other Microsoft 365 applications.” In other words, the company wants people to use Word, PowerPoint and its Designer app instead.

Who is affected, and what happens to your .pub files?

It depends on how you got Publisher.

If you pay for Microsoft 365

This is the group hit hardest. Microsoft says plainly: “If you have a Microsoft 365 subscription, you will no longer be able to open or edit your Publisher files using Microsoft Publisher.” Your .pub files still exist in OneDrive or on your PC, but the app that opens them is gone from your subscription.

If you bought Office once (for example, Office 2019 or 2021)

Microsoft’s wording is that these installations “will no longer be supported” after 13 October 2026. That means no more security or bug fixes. Microsoft’s support page doesn’t say the app will stop launching, so an existing install may keep opening files for now. Still, it’s unpatched software from here on, so treat it as a way to get your files out, not a long-term home for them.

If Publisher came through your school or office

Your IT team will usually handle this, and many universities have already sent out notices. The University of Washington’s IT team, for example, told staff to find every .pub file across their devices, OneDrive and SharePoint, and sort them into active, archive and delete piles.

How to convert Publisher files to PDF

If you still have Publisher installed anywhere, this is the single most useful thing you can do today. Microsoft’s own steps are:

Open the Publisher file.
Go to File and then Save as.
Choose where to save it.
Select PDF as the file type and click Save.

A PDF keeps your layout exactly as it looks, so it’s perfect for printing, emailing or archiving. It isn’t great for editing, though, which brings us to the next step.

Turning a PDF back into something you can edit

If you’ll need to change the document later, open the PDF in Microsoft Word. Word converts PDFs into editable documents. University IT guides that follow Microsoft’s advice warn that complex layouts may need some manual fixing afterwards, so check pages with lots of images or text boxes carefully.

If you have lots of files

Do the important ones first: things you reuse every month, like a newsletter template or price list. Old one-off flyers can usually stay as PDFs forever. Organisations with large archives should talk to IT about bulk conversion. UW-IT notes that Microsoft offers migration guidance and PowerShell scripts for converting many files to PDF at once.

What should you use instead of Publisher?

Microsoft points people towards apps they probably already have. Here’s how the options compare for common Publisher jobs.

What you made in Publisher	Good replacement	Cost
Newsletters, labels, envelopes, forms	Microsoft Word	Included in Microsoft 365; free basic version on the web
Posters, banners, one-page flyers	Microsoft PowerPoint	Included in Microsoft 365; free basic version on the web
Designed social posts and invites	Microsoft Designer or Canva	Free tiers available
Multi-page layouts, brochures, booklets	Affinity (by Canva)	Free, with paid AI extras
Opening old .pub files without Publisher	LibreOffice or Scribus	Free

A few notes on these:

Word and PowerPoint are Microsoft’s official answer. Its support page suggests Word for envelopes, labels and newsletters, and PowerPoint for banners and posters. There are ready-made templates on Microsoft Create. If you don’t pay for Microsoft 365, see our guide to using Microsoft Office for free.
Affinity is the closest thing to a true Publisher replacement. Canva relaunched it in October 2025 as a single free app for Windows and Mac, with a dedicated Layout mode built from the old Affinity Publisher, TechRadar reported. Its AI features need a paid Canva Pro plan, but the layout tools don’t.
LibreOffice and Scribus are free apps that can import .pub files “with some success,” according to Wikipedia’s entry on Publisher. Expect some formatting to shift, but it’s a useful fallback if you’ve lost access to Publisher entirely and only have the .pub file.

A simple plan for this week

If you’re short on time, this order covers most people:

Find your files. Search your PC and OneDrive for “.pub”.
Save every important one as a PDF while you still have a working copy of Publisher anywhere (an old PC, a colleague’s laptop, a perpetual Office install).
Rebuild your top two or three templates in Word, PowerPoint or Affinity. Recreating a newsletter template once is usually faster than fixing a messy conversion every month.
Keep the original .pub files in a folder too. They take little space and free tools may open them later.

For more app retirements and how-tos like this, browse our Apps and Software section.

Frequently asked questions

Can I still open .pub files after October 2026?

Not in Publisher if you rely on a Microsoft 365 subscription, since access ended on 1 October 2026. Free apps like LibreOffice and Scribus can import .pub files with mixed results, and a PDF you saved earlier will open anywhere.

Will Publisher keep working if I bought Office 2021 or 2019?

Microsoft says support for these versions ends on 13 October 2026, meaning no more fixes or security updates. Its support page doesn’t say the app will stop opening, but you shouldn’t rely on unsupported software long term, so convert your files now.

Can Microsoft Word open Publisher files directly?

No. The route Microsoft recommends is to save the .pub file as a PDF in Publisher first, then open that PDF in Word, which turns it into an editable document. Complex layouts may need some tidying.

Is there a free Publisher alternative?

Yes. Affinity is free on Windows and Mac and includes a full page-layout mode. For simpler jobs, the free web versions of Word and PowerPoint, Microsoft Designer and Canva’s free plan all work well.

Why is Microsoft retiring Publisher?

Microsoft says most of Publisher’s features already exist in other Microsoft 365 apps, so it’s folding that work into Word, PowerPoint and Designer rather than keeping a separate desktop publishing app.

Microsoft Publisher Is Retired: How to Save Your Files