Where to find the Copilot toggle in Word

Copilot appears as a button on the right side of Word's ribbon — the toolbar at the top of the window. It looks like a small icon with a sparkle or star. To disable it, click the arrow next to that icon and select "Turn off" or "Disable Copilot". The exact wording depends on your Word version, but the option will be in that dropdown menu.

If you do not see a Copilot button at all, your version of Word may not have it yet. Microsoft rolled out Copilot to Microsoft 365 subscribers gradually starting in late 2023, so older installations or standalone Word licenses may not have the feature. Checking for updates through File > Account > Update Options will bring you to the latest version if one is available.

Key Takeaways

  • Copilot in Word appears as a button on the ribbon and can be disabled by clicking its dropdown menu and selecting the off option.
  • Disabling Copilot in Word does not affect Copilot in other Microsoft 365 apps like Excel or Outlook — each app has its own toggle.
  • If Copilot is using system resources and slowing your computer, turning it off frees up RAM and processor time when ready.
  • You can turn Copilot back on at any time using the same menu, so disabling it is not permanent.

Why you might want to disable Copilot

Copilot runs in the background and uses memory and processor cycles even when you are not actively using it. On older computers or machines with limited RAM, this can slow down Word's responsiveness and make other programs feel sluggish. If you notice Word taking longer to open, save, or switch between documents after Copilot was added, disabling it often restores the speed you had before.

Some users also disable Copilot for privacy reasons. The feature sends text from your document to Microsoft's servers to generate suggestions, which means your writing is not staying entirely on your machine. If you work with sensitive information or straightforward prefer not to send your work to cloud servers, turning off Copilot removes that data transfer.

Disabling Copilot does not affect other Microsoft 365 apps

Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint each have their own Copilot toggle. Turning off Copilot in Word leaves it running in Excel or Outlook if you have it enabled there. If you want to disable Copilot across all Microsoft 365 apps, you will need to turn it off in each one separately using the same method — finding the Copilot button and selecting the off option.

This separation is useful if you want Copilot in some apps but not others. For example, you might keep it on in Excel to help with formulas but disable it in Word to save resources while writing.

How to check if Copilot is actually off

After you disable Copilot, the button should disappear from the ribbon or show a grayed-out state. If you still see the Copilot button and it is clickable, the toggle did not take effect. Close Word completely and reopen it — sometimes the change requires a full restart of the process.

If the button reappears after you restart, Microsoft may have re-enabled it through an update. Check your Word version again by going to File > Account > About Word. If a new update was installed, the Copilot toggle may have reset to on. You can disable it again using the same steps.

Turning Copilot back on if you change your mind

If you disable Copilot and later decide you want to use it, the process is identical. Click the Copilot button (or look for an option to enable it in the ribbon if the button is hidden) and select "Turn on" from the dropdown. Word will restart the Copilot service and the button will become active again.

There is no penalty for turning it on and off multiple times. Some users disable it while working on performance-heavy tasks like editing large documents with many images, then re-enable it when they want writing suggestions again.

What happens to unsaved Copilot suggestions

If Copilot has generated suggestions in your document and you disable the feature, those suggestions remain in your document as regular text — they do not disappear. Only the ability to generate new suggestions goes away. You can keep, edit, or delete any suggestions that were already inserted before you turned off Copilot.

If you had Copilot open in the side panel when you disabled it, that panel will close. Any draft suggestions that were showing but not yet inserted into your document will be lost.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does disabling Copilot in Word speed up my computer?

It can, especially on machines with less than 8 GB of RAM. Copilot uses memory and processor time in the background. On newer computers with plenty of resources, you may not notice a difference. On older or slower machines, disabling it often makes Word open faster and respond more quickly to typing and scrolling.

Will Microsoft force Copilot back on in a future update?

Microsoft has not announced plans to override user settings, but updates have re-enabled Copilot in the past. If you disable it and it reappears after an update, you can disable it again. The toggle will remain available as long as you have a Microsoft 365 subscription.

Can I disable Copilot for just one document?

No. The Copilot toggle is a global setting for Word itself, not per-document. When you disable it, it stays off for all documents until you turn it back on. If you want to use Copilot for some documents but not others, you will need to toggle it on and off as you switch between them.

What if the Copilot button does not appear in my Word ribbon?

Your version of Word may not have Copilot yet. Microsoft 365 subscribers with the latest updates have access, but the rollout was gradual. Check File > Account > Update Options to install the newest version. If you have a standalone Word license (not Microsoft 365), Copilot is not available regardless of updates.