How Do I open and edit an existing publisher doc on my laptop

Dear Leo Powell,

Thank you for reaching out to us about your issues on Microsoft Q&A. I understand that you have the problem with Publisher, which you would like to open and edit it's on your end.

If You Have Microsoft Publisher Installed

1. Locate the File  Find your .pub file on your laptop (usually in Downloads or Documents).
2. Open with Publisher
   • Right-click the file → Choose Open with → Select Microsoft Publisher
   • Or launch Publisher first, then go to File > Open and browse to the file
3. Edit the Document   You can now modify text, images, layout, and design elements.
   • Use the Insert tab to add pictures, shapes, or text boxes
   • Use Page Design to adjust themes and backgrounds

Please note: Publisher doesn't have a viewer for opening and viewing Publisher (.pub) files. But if you want to send a publication or receive a publication in email, you have some options.

For your reference: Where is the Publisher viewer? - Microsoft Support

Hence, you could consider changing Publisher file to PDF in order to edit the content on PDF file if you are the viewer in this case.

Please help me update your situation, if you need further assistance, feel free to let me know.

Sincerely

Ami - Microsoft Q&A Support Specialist

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LibreOffice, which is free can open/edit/create pub docs