# How to Turn Off Copilot in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook

This is a plain-text copy of a guide published by Ellington Technologies, made for pasting into an AI assistant. It's generated from the same source file as the web page. If the two ever differ, the web page is correct: https://jeremiahellington.com/resources/turn-off-copilot-word-excel-outlook

- Source (authoritative web version): https://jeremiahellington.com/resources/turn-off-copilot-word-excel-outlook
- Author: Jeremiah Ellington
- Published: 2026-10-30
- Last updated: 2026-10-30
- Last reviewed: 2026-10-30
- Next scheduled review: 2027-01-30
- Applies to: Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote for Microsoft 365 on Windows, and Word, Excel and PowerPoint for Microsoft 365 on Mac, signed in with a personal Microsoft account; Outlook's Copilot setting on Android, iOS, Mac, the web and new Outlook for Windows; Copilot formula suggestions in Excel for Windows and Excel for the web. As described in Microsoft's support pages on 2026-10-30. Checked against documentation only, not tested in an account
- Who it's for: Home users and small-office staff who use the Microsoft 365 apps and don't want Copilot in them, and the person who looks after those computers.
- Level: Beginner

Where Microsoft's own settings turn Copilot off in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote and Outlook, what each setting covers, and where it can't be turned off, as of October 30, 2026.

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If Copilot keeps appearing in Word, Excel or Outlook and you'd rather it didn't, Microsoft gives you settings to turn it off. Which setting you need, and how far it reaches, depends on the app and on the account you're signed in with.

This is for home users and small-office staff on the Microsoft 365 desktop apps, and whoever looks after their computers. It covers Microsoft's own settings for Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote and Outlook, Excel's separate formula suggestions, where Copilot can't be turned off, and how to turn it back on. It doesn't cover uninstalling anything or third-party tools.

> **Note:**
> **Checked against Microsoft's documentation, not tested in an account.** Every step and menu name here comes from Microsoft's support pages, read on October 30, 2026 without signing in. None of it was tried in a Microsoft 365 account, and there are no screenshots. Microsoft changes these screens often, so each section links the page it relies on.

## First, which account are you signed in with?

This decides whether the steps below apply to you at all.

As of October 30, 2026, [Microsoft's turn-off page](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/privacy/turn-off-copilot-in-microsoft-365-apps) says its settings apply only when you're signed in to the Microsoft 365 apps with a **Microsoft account**. Its example is a personal email address. It says they "aren't available if you're signed in with a work or school account."

- **Personal Microsoft account** (Microsoft's example is "a personal email address"): the sections below are for you.
- **Work or school account:** your organization's IT admin manages Copilot. Ask them rather than looking for a setting that may not be there. For admins, Microsoft Learn's [Manage Copilot Chat](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/copilot/manage) page covers blocking Copilot Chat for users or groups in the Copilot app, Outlook, Teams and on the web. It isn't a guide to the Word, Excel and PowerPoint settings below.

## Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote: the "Enable Copilot" checkbox

Each of these apps has its own **Enable Copilot** checkbox. Microsoft's page says that when you clear it, the Copilot icon on the ribbon is disabled and you can't use any Copilot features in that app.

**Which versions have it.** Microsoft lists these as the first versions with the checkbox, "as of March 13, 2025":

| App | Windows | Mac |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Word | Version 2412 | Version 16.93 |
| Excel | Version 2501 | Version 16.93.2 |
| PowerPoint | Version 2501 | Version 16.93.2 |
| OneNote | Version 2502 | Not listed |

If you don't see the checkbox, Microsoft's advice is to check your app version and update it.

> **Important:**
> **This is a change to the app on this computer, and it affects everyone who uses it.** Microsoft's page says the checkbox "only applies to that app on that device", and "turning off Copilot on a device turns off Copilot for anybody using that device." Turning it off in Word doesn't turn it off in Excel. Turning it off on your desktop doesn't turn it off on your laptop. Repeat the steps in each app, on each computer. If you share the computer, tell the other people who use it.

### On Windows

1. In the app (Word, Excel, PowerPoint or OneNote), go to **File > Options > Copilot**.
2. Clear the **Enable Copilot** checkbox.
3. Select **OK**, then close and restart the app.

### On a Mac

1. In the app (Word, Excel or PowerPoint), select the app menu, then go to **Preferences > Authoring and Proofing Tools > Copilot**.
2. Clear the **Enable Copilot** checkbox.
3. Close and restart the app.

**How to check it worked.** After the restart, the Copilot icon on that app's ribbon should be disabled, which is what Microsoft's page says happens.

### Hiding the icon isn't turning it off

You can also remove the Copilot icon from the ribbon by customizing the ribbon. Microsoft's page is clear that this "doesn't turn off Copilot; you can still access Copilot through other methods, such as the shortcut menu." Use the checkbox if you want it off.

## Outlook: the "Turn on Copilot" toggle

Outlook works differently from the other apps. Instead of a checkbox, it has a **Turn on Copilot** toggle. Microsoft's turn-off page lists where it is "as of June 3, 2025", and the list was the same on October 30, 2026:

| Outlook on | Where the toggle is |
| --- | --- |
| Android | Quick Settings > Copilot |
| iOS | Quick Settings > Copilot |
| Mac | Quick Settings > Copilot |
| The web | Settings > Copilot |
| Windows (new Outlook) | Settings > Copilot |

On iOS and Android, Microsoft says to update to the latest Outlook from the app store first. On a Mac, update to at least Version 16.95.3. Outlook on the web needs no update.

**Classic Outlook for Windows doesn't have the toggle.** Microsoft's page says there's "currently no estimated date" for it.

Microsoft's two pages describe this toggle a little differently. The turn-off page calls it the way to "turn off Copilot in Outlook". The [Copilot Toggle page](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/copilot-toggle) describes it as a setting that lets you "hide Copilot entry points (e.g. Summarize this email) from the Outlook app."

> **Important:**
> **This is a change to your account, not to one device.** Microsoft's turn-off page says your choice "will apply to Outlook on all your devices when you're signed in with the same account." Its [Copilot Toggle page](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/copilot-toggle) says the preference "will roam across all Outlook clients." Turn it off on your Mac, and it's off for that account on your phone too. It's set account by account, so if you have more than one account in Outlook, each one has its own setting.

To turn it off:

1. Open Outlook and go to the place listed in the table for your version (**Settings** or **Quick Settings**).
2. Select **Copilot**.
3. Turn off the **Turn on Copilot** toggle.

Those steps combine Microsoft's two pages: the table's locations from the turn-off page, and "go to the 'Copilot' tab" and "adjust Copilot toggle" from the Copilot Toggle page. Microsoft doesn't describe a restart for Outlook.

**About work accounts in Outlook.** Microsoft's two pages don't say quite the same thing here. The Copilot Toggle page says the per-account setting "applies to both their organizational email and to any personal email accounts they have in the app". The turn-off page says its settings aren't available with work or school accounts. If you don't see the toggle for a work account, that's a question for your IT admin.

## Excel: turning off formula suggestions

Excel's Copilot formula suggestions are a separate setting with [their own Microsoft page](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/excel/copilot/copilot-formula-suggestions-turn-on-off). There are two check boxes under Copilot options, and you can turn off either or both:

- **Show Copilot suggestions for completing formulas.** This is formula completion: Copilot suggests a whole formula when you type `=` in a cell.
- **Show Copilot suggestions for formulas based on patterns in your content.** This is formula by example. You type a few example values, and Copilot suggests a formula to fill the rest of the column.

> **Note:**
> **This is a change to an Excel setting.** Microsoft's page says a setting you turn off "stays off until you turn it back on the same way" and that "Excel remembers your choice the next time you open the app." It doesn't say whether the choice applies to one computer or to your account everywhere, so don't assume either. If you use Excel on more than one computer, check each one.

### In Excel for Windows

1. Select **File > Options**.
2. In the **Excel Options** dialog, select **Copilot**.
3. Clear the check box for each feature you want off: **Show Copilot suggestions for completing formulas**, **Show Copilot suggestions for formulas based on patterns in your content**, or both.
4. Select **OK**.

### In Excel for the web

1. Select **File > Options (...) > Copilot Settings**.
2. In the **Copilot Settings** dialog, clear the check box for each feature you want off.
3. Select **OK**.

In Excel for the web, you can also turn off formula completion from a suggestion itself. Select **More options (...)** on the suggestion card, then **Turn off Copilot suggestions for completing formulas**. Microsoft says this changes the same setting as **Copilot Settings**.

## Where you can't turn it off

As of October 30, 2026, Microsoft's pages say:

- **Word, Excel and PowerPoint on iOS, Android and the web:** "You can't turn off Copilot in the iOS, Android, or web versions of Word, Excel, or PowerPoint" ([turn-off page](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/privacy/turn-off-copilot-in-microsoft-365-apps)). Excel for the web's formula suggestions are a separate setting, covered above. Outlook on those platforms does have its toggle, above.
- **Classic Outlook for Windows** doesn't have the toggle yet, with no estimated date.
- **Designer, Notepad and Paint:** "You can't turn off Copilot features" in them ([Microsoft 365 subscriptions FAQ](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365-copilot/frequently-asked-questions-about-copilot-in-microsoft-365-subscriptions)).

> **Warning:**
> **There's a broader privacy setting, and it turns off more than Copilot.** Microsoft's turn-off page also describes turning Copilot off through your account's privacy settings, for apps that don't have the checkbox yet. It warns that this also turns off other features "that you might want to use". Its examples are "suggested replies in Outlook, text predictions in Word, PowerPoint Designer, and automatic alt text for images." This guide doesn't walk through it. If you're considering it, read [Microsoft's page](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/privacy/turn-off-copilot-in-microsoft-365-apps) and its linked list of affected features first. Use the checkbox or toggle above where your app has one.

## How to turn Copilot back on

You turn each setting back on the same way you turned it off.

> **Note:**
> **Turning Copilot back on is also a change, and it reaches as far as the setting it reverses.**
> - **Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote:** it turns Copilot back on in that one app, on that one computer, for everyone who uses it.
> - **Outlook:** it turns Copilot back on for that account in Outlook on every device.
> - **Excel formula suggestions:** Microsoft doesn't say whether this is per computer or per account, as above.

- **Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote:** repeat the steps for Windows or Mac above, but **select** the **Enable Copilot** checkbox, select **OK** on Windows, then restart the app.
- **Outlook:** turn the **Turn on Copilot** toggle back on in **Settings** or **Quick Settings**.
- **Excel formula suggestions:** follow the same steps for your version of Excel, select the check boxes you cleared, and select **OK**.

## Next steps

If you look after Microsoft 365 for a small office, the [Microsoft 365 small-office guide](https://jeremiahellington.com/resources/microsoft-365-small-office-guide) covers the settings that protect the accounts themselves. They include admin accounts, multifactor authentication, email authentication and sharing. The [Small Business Cybersecurity Checklist](https://jeremiahellington.com/resources/small-business-cybersecurity-checklist) puts those in priority order alongside backups, updates and the rest.

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## Sources and official documentation

- [Microsoft Support: Turn off Copilot in Microsoft 365 apps (checked 2026-10-30; page dated 2026-03-20)](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/privacy/turn-off-copilot-in-microsoft-365-apps)
- [Microsoft Support: Copilot Toggle, Outlook (checked 2026-10-30; page dated 2026-09-27)](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook/copilot-toggle)
- [Microsoft Support: Turn Copilot formula suggestions on or off in Excel (checked 2026-10-30; page dated 2026-07-10)](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/excel/copilot/copilot-formula-suggestions-turn-on-off)
- [Microsoft Support: Frequently asked questions about Copilot in Microsoft 365 subscriptions (checked 2026-10-30; page dated 2026-08-31)](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365-copilot/frequently-asked-questions-about-copilot-in-microsoft-365-subscriptions)
- [Microsoft Learn: Manage Copilot Chat (checked 2026-10-30; page dated 2026-10-28)](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/copilot/manage)

## Review history

- Technical review: Jeremiah Ellington, 2026-10-30
- Editorial review: Jeremiah Ellington, 2026-10-30