What causes "Grammarly Not Working in Word"?

Old Grammarly for Microsoft Office add-in retired (Windows) / discontinued (Word on Mac) Desktop app's floating widget replaced by a right-edge tab Word added to Grammarly's Block List Footnotes, endnotes, tables of contents, images, tables or equations in the doc Very long documents Other Office add-ins interfering

How do I fix "Grammarly Not Working in Word"?

1. Install Grammarly for Windows or Mac: Download the desktop app from grammarly.com/desktop Sign in and open Word - Grammarly works without the old add-in Windows 10/11 with Office 2016+ is required; older setups should use the web editor or browser extension 2. Find the Grammarly tab: Hover over the right edge of the screen to reveal the Grammarly tab (it replaced the floating widget) On Mac, if missing, click the Grammarly menu bar icon > Turn on Grammarly tab 3. Check the Block List: Open Grammarly Settings from the system tray (Windows) or menu bar (Mac) Open the Block List tab and remove Microsoft Word 4. Simplify the document: Temporarily remove footnotes, endnotes, table of contents, tables, images and equations Split documents into sections of no more than 50 pages 5. Restart Grammarly: Quit Grammarly from the tray/menu bar icon Relaunch Grammarly Desktop and restart Word

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Grammarly Not Working in Word

Workaround available Windows, Mac Updated October 21, 2026

Quick answer

Grammarly's Word add-in is discontinued on Mac and being retired on Windows, so the fix is usually to install the Grammarly for Windows or Mac desktop app. If it's installed, look for the tab on the right screen edge and check the Block List.

Most likely fix: Install Grammarly for Windows or Mac.

Symptoms

Grammarly missing from the Word ribbon, no underlines in Word, the widget gone, cursor jumping, or text corrupted after accepting a suggestion.

Why it happens

Old Grammarly for Microsoft Office add-in retired (Windows) / discontinued (Word on Mac)
Desktop app's floating widget replaced by a right-edge tab
Word added to Grammarly's Block List
Footnotes, endnotes, tables of contents, images, tables or equations in the doc
Very long documents
Other Office add-ins interfering

How to fix it

Try these in order — the most common fix is first.

1. Install Grammarly for Windows or Mac
1. Download the desktop app from grammarly.com/desktop
2. Sign in and open Word - Grammarly works without the old add-in
3. Windows 10/11 with Office 2016+ is required; older setups should use the web editor or browser extension
2. Find the Grammarly tab
1. Hover over the right edge of the screen to reveal the Grammarly tab (it replaced the floating widget)
2. On Mac, if missing, click the Grammarly menu bar icon > Turn on Grammarly tab
3. Check the Block List
1. Open Grammarly Settings from the system tray (Windows) or menu bar (Mac)
2. Open the Block List tab and remove Microsoft Word
4. Simplify the document
1. Temporarily remove footnotes, endnotes, table of contents, tables, images and equations
2. Split documents into sections of no more than 50 pages
5. Restart Grammarly
1. Quit Grammarly from the tray/menu bar icon
2. Relaunch Grammarly Desktop and restart Word

This guide also covers

grammarly not working in word
grammarly not showing in word
grammarly add-in word missing
grammarly word mac discontinued

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