Microsoft Office App Released for iPhone, Combines Word, Excel, and PowerPoint

Following beta testing, Microsoft today released its new Office app for iPhone, bringing together Word, Excel, and PowerPoint in a single app.

microsoft office app 2020
The main benefit of the unified Office app is that it requires only a single download with a much smaller file size, but it does have a few unique features, including camera integration for easily converting photos of documents and tables into Word and Excel files. The app also has a new Actions pane that supports a number of common tasks like signing PDFs and scanning QR codes.

Microsoft explains some of the benefits of the new Office app in a blog post:

The Office app delivers several key benefits including:

- Combining Word, Excel, and PowerPoint in a way that simplifies the experience with fewer apps to download or switch between. It requires far less phone storage than installing individual apps while maintaining virtually all the capabilities of the existing mobile apps people already know and use.

- Integrating our Lens technology to unlock the power of the camera with capabilities like converting images into editable Word and Excel documents, scanning PDFs, and capturing whiteboards with automatic digital enhancements to make the content easier to read.

- Adding new functionality for common tasks people often encounter when working on a phone—things like making quick notes, signing PDFs, scanning QR codes, and transferring files between devices.

The new Microsoft Office app is available on the App Store for the iPhone and on the Google Play Store for Android. Microsoft says the app will be optimized to support the iPad soon. The app is free to use, even without signing in, but an Office 365 subscription starting at $6.99 per month is required to unlock premium features.


Microsoft's standalone Word, Excel, and PowerPoint apps remain available and were recently updated with a simplified three-tab layout.

(Thanks, Michaël!)

Popular Stories

maxresdefault

Where's the New Apple TV?

Monday December 22, 2025 11:30 am PST by
Apple hasn't updated the Apple TV 4K since 2022, and 2025 was supposed to be the year that we got a refresh. There were rumors suggesting Apple would release the new Apple TV before the end of 2025, but it looks like that's not going to happen now. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said several times across 2024 and 2025 that Apple would...
iPhone Top Left Hole Punch Face ID Feature Purple

iPhone 18 Pro Launching Next Year With These 12 New Features

Tuesday December 23, 2025 8:36 am PST by
While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are not expected to launch for another nine months, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we have recapped 12 features rumored for the iPhone 18 Pro models. The same overall design is expected, with 6.3-inch and 6.9-inch display sizes, and a "plateau" housing three rear cameras Under-screen Face ID Front camera in...
maxresdefault

Hands-On With a Rough iPhone Fold Mockup

Monday December 29, 2025 10:55 am PST by
Apple is rumored to be introducing a foldable iPhone in September 2026, and since it will bring the biggest form factor change since the iPhone was introduced in 2007, curiosity about the design is high. A 3D designer created an iPhone Fold design based on rumors, and we printed it out to see how it compares to Apple's current iPhones. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more ...
iOS 26

iOS 26.2 Adds These 8 New Features to Your iPhone

Monday December 22, 2025 8:47 am PST by
Earlier this month, Apple released iOS 26.2, following more than a month of beta testing. It is a big update, with many new features and changes for iPhones. iOS 26.2 adds a Liquid Glass slider for the Lock Screen's clock, offline lyrics in Apple Music, and more. Below, we have highlighted a total of eight new features. Liquid Glass Slider on Lock Screen A new slider in the Lock...
apple intelligence black

Report: Apple's AI Strategy Could Finally Pay Off in 2026

Tuesday December 30, 2025 9:01 am PST by
Apple's restrained artificial intelligence strategy may pay off in 2026 amid the arrival of a revamped Siri and concerns around the AI market "bubble" bursting, The Information argues. The speculative report notes that Apple has taken a restrained approach with AI innovations compared with peers such as OpenAI, Google, and Meta, which are investing hundreds of billions of dollars in data...
airpods color prototypes

Apple Tested AirPods in Bright Colors

Saturday December 27, 2025 6:06 am PST by
Apple reportedly tested a version of the first-generation AirPods with bright, iPhone 5c-like colored charging cases. The images, shared by the Apple leaker and prototype collector known as "Kosutami," claim to show first-generation AirPods prototypes with pink and yellow exterior casings. The interior of the charging case and the earbuds themselves remain white. They seem close to some...
apple fitness 2026 1

Apple Teases 'Something Big' Coming Soon to Apple Fitness+

Tuesday December 30, 2025 2:11 pm PST by
The Apple Fitness+ Instagram account today teased that the service has "big plans" for 2026. In a video, several Apple Fitness+ trainers are shown holding up newspapers with headlines related to Apple Fitness+. What's Apple Fitness+ Planning for the New Year? Something Big is Coming to Apple Fitness+ The Countdown Begins. Apple Fitness+ 2026 is Almost Here 2026 Plans Still Under ...
tesla red orange bg feature

Tesla Could Be Planning to Support Apple Car Keys

Sunday December 28, 2025 4:24 am PST by
Support for Apple Car Keys may now be more likely to come to Tesla vehicles, amid new evidence that the automaker is embracing native, system-level digital car keys. According to Not a Tesla App, 4.52.0 of Tesla's mobile app contains multiple code references to Harmony Wallet Key Cards. The discovery is notable because it represents a shift in how Tesla appears to be approaching mobile...

Top Rated Comments

alphaswift Avatar
77 months ago
So if both versions remain available, which one is better to use for doc creation? Which is better if you're read-only?
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
melgross Avatar
77 months ago
So Apple has to split iTunes into several apps because people complain it’s too complex, and Microsoft combines several apps into one to make it less complex?
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TwoBytes Avatar
77 months ago

What's interesting to me is that Office used to be available through a single app, and Microsoft broke it into individual apps a few years ago. You don't often see a company - especially one this size - make a change like that only to later change back. I wonder what they saw in their internal data to prompt this? It can't all be about app size, can it?
You can see the reviews from 5 years ago in the app reviews!
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Achiever Avatar
77 months ago
What's interesting to me is that Office used to be available through a single app, and Microsoft broke it into individual apps a few years ago. You don't often see a company - especially one this size - make a change like that only to later change back. I wonder what they saw in their internal data to prompt this? It can't all be about app size, can it?
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
1144557 Avatar
77 months ago

So I guess you can delete the individual apps if you have this Office app then?

So if both versions remain available, which one is better to use for doc creation? Which is better if you're read-only?
Thats the million-dollar question here. Are there any differences
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DoctorTech Avatar
77 months ago
I never create MS Office documents on my iPhone but I sometimes need to open and view them when I am away from my laptop or tablet so this might be a good solution for users like me.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)