Microsoft Word is the granddaddy of word processing programs, tracing its roots back to 1983 for the Windows operating system.
Over the decades, it has been updated regularly to become the powerful text editing tool that we know today. With each update, Word has grown better, adding more features and exploiting the latest technology.
The most up to date version currently is the web-based Microsoft 365. However, it still exists for desktops and lives in the Microsoft Office 2019 suite as Word 2019.
It’s a far cry from its humble origins as software written by Richard Brodie and Charles Simonyi for the DOS operating system on IBM computers. A year later, in 1984, the first Word version for the Apple Macintosh came along.
Create, read, edit and share documents
Read, edit and create PDFs
Create documents from templates
Rich formatting and layout editing
Collaborate on documents
Microsoft Word gives users the tools to create and format professional documents. It has a rich suite of features to ensure your documents are eye-catching and attractive, and easy to share and collaborate with others.
MS Word is, in many instances, the de facto document file type standard. You can be sure that when sharing or emailing a Word document, the recipient will have a way to open it even if they don’t have Word.
The free Google Docs tools enable people to read, edit and create documents in just about all Microsoft document types, including Word.
Mobile-friendly
Easy to use
Powerful features
Secure
You need a Microsoft Account
It can be slow to load at times
You can download Microsoft Word at Google Play and Apple’s App Store. Or directly from microsoft.com.
To get started with Word, sign in with your free Microsoft account. However, to get all the features unlocked, you will need to take out a Microsoft 365 subscription on your phone, tablet, PC, or Mac.
Microsoft 365 users can unlock all the premium features, edit and track changes, get more formatting tools, and edit charts and chart elements.
The cheapest option is Microsoft 365 Personal, which is currently $69.99 per year or $6.99 per month. This package is for one user and includes one terabyte of storage.
A better option may be Microsoft 365 Family, which supports two to six people and costs $99.99 annually or $9.99 per month. Each person gets one terabyte of storage, plus there are premium safety features included in the mobile app. Currently, Microsoft is offering a one-month free trial.
The business packages range from $5 to $20 per month per user but with an annual commitment.
However, if you don’t need all the whistles and bells, you can use a cut-down free version of Word online with a Microsoft account and then heading to office.com. If you have Outlook Live, click the app cluster icon, which will take you there. You also get free versions of the other Office apps, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneDrive.
