Microsoft Office has been one of the leaders of commercially available desktop bundles of productivity programs for the past two decades. Despite the popularity of the application suite, a number of computer users have made the shift to open solutions such as Open Office which provide equivalent performance for little to no cost. Once users are able to make the shift to a compatible alternative to MS Office, a common problem that arises is how to uninstall Microsoft Office.

Automatically Uninstall Microsoft Office on Windows

The first place to start when you are looking to unisntall Microsoft Office on a Windows computer is to try to use the “Add or Remove Programs” feature located in the “Control Panel” or “Programs and Features” location depending on the version of Windows installed on your computer. How to uninstall microsoft office

Steps to Remove Microsoft Office Using the Add or Remove Programs Feature

Step 1 – Select the “Start” and “Settings” program menu options.

Step 2 – Choose the “Add or Remove Programs” menu selection.

Step 3 – Select the “Add/Remove” program icon located underneath the Microsoft Office program icon and follow the subsequent default menu options displayed on the computer screen.

Step 4 – Restart the computer to complete removal of Microsoft Office.

If you encounter an error using the automatic removal of Microsoft Office, it will require manual removal.

Manually Remove Microsoft Office on Windows

Step 1 – Select the “Start” and “Run” menu options.

Step 2 – Enter “control appwiz.cpl” in the search text field box followed by the “Enter” key.

Step 3 – Select the Microsoft Office product from the subsequent applications listing.

Step 4 – Click the “Remove” menu button to proceed with MS Office removal. On Windows Vista, you will click “Uninstall/Change” underneath the MS Office application to remove.
Step 5 – Restart your computer after the application has been removed to complete the uninstall of Microsoft Office.

Uninstall Microsoft Office on Mac OS X

Over the past 10 years, Microsoft Office has seen an increasingly use on the Mac OS X operating system. Many users of Office on a Mac will also find an alternative, open solution to the software suite of programs and have a desire to remove application.

Remove Microsoft Office v.X

Step 1 – Insert the Microsoft Office CD into your computer.

Step 2 – Choose the “Value” and “Packfolder” options in order to view the “Remove Office” folder.

Step 3 – Double click the Remove Office application after viewing the “Read Me” file located in the same folder for additional considerations.

Step 4 – Restart your computer to complete uninstall of Microsoft Office on a Mac OS X computer. Once removed, the files will be placed in the “Trash” icon on your computer' desktop after removal is completed.