In Word, Excel and PowerPoint, Copilot is the Copilot button in the lower-right corner of your document, and selecting it opens Copilot in a chat pane on the right. In Outlook it’s the Summarize button at the top of an email thread and the Copilot icon in the toolbar when you’re writing a message. If you can’t find it, Microsoft says it’s usually one of two things: the button moved, or your account or licence needs attention.
Copilot changed twice in 2026, and either change can make the button look missing. Between April and June, Microsoft moved Copilot in Word, Excel and PowerPoint off the Home tab and into that corner button. Microsoft’s own troubleshooting page now opens with “The button moved, so it might not be missing.” And in March, Microsoft told admins through the Message Center that from 15 April 2026 Copilot would no longer be available in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote for some people who only have Copilot Chat. Reports at the time tied it to organisations with more than 2,000 users, though Microsoft’s public pages don’t say what decides it. If your button vanished around then and nobody gave you a licence, check your licence label below before anything else.
Where is the Copilot button in Word, Excel and PowerPoint?
Look at the lower-right corner of the document, spreadsheet or slide. Microsoft calls it the Copilot Dynamic Action Button, and it’s the same in all three apps on Windows, Mac and the web. Hover over it for suggestions, or select it to open the chat pane.
| What you want | How |
|---|---|
| Reach Copilot from the keyboard | Alt + C on Windows or Cmd + Control + I on a Mac moves focus to the button (or to the chat box if the pane is open). Those are still rolling out, and F6 works everywhere in the meantime. F6 replaces the old Alt + H, F, X |
| Get the button out of the way | Right-click it and choose Dock, or drag it to the side. It stays docked for the rest of your session |
| Put it back on the ribbon | Right-click it and choose Move to ribbon. Word, Excel and PowerPoint remember this on Windows and Mac. On the web it lasts for the session |
| Undo that | Right-click the ribbon button and choose Move out of ribbon |
Move to ribbon needs Windows build 16.0.20129.15140 or later, or build 16.109.525.2 or later on a Mac. If you work in a government cloud tenant (GCC, GCC High or DoD), the corner button only started arriving in October 2026, so your screen may still match the older instructions.
Each app opens Copilot slightly differently once you’re in. Word opens it with Edit turned on, so Copilot changes the document directly; switch to Chat only if you want answers without edits. Excel has three modes in the chat pane: Allow editing, Plan and Chat only. PowerPoint opens the same chat pane alongside your slides.
Where is Copilot in Outlook?
Outlook didn’t get the corner button. Microsoft says Copilot in Outlook “continues to use its existing entry points”, and they vary by version.
| Outlook version | Summarise a thread | Write an email |
|---|---|---|
| New Outlook for Windows and Outlook on the web | Summarize or Summary by Copilot at the top of the thread | New mail, then the Copilot icon in the toolbar, or Help me write in the message |
| Classic Outlook for Windows | Summary by Copilot at the top of the thread | New Email, then the Copilot icon in the toolbar, Draft with Copilot |
| Outlook for Mac | Summarize in the Summary by Copilot box | New Message, then the Copilot icon in the toolbar |
| Outlook for iOS and Android | The Copilot icon in the toolbar | New Mail, then the Copilot icon, Draft with Copilot or Coaching by Copilot |
You can also type / in a new message and choose Draft with Copilot, and chat with Copilot from the Copilot icon in Outlook’s navigation. Drafting from Copilot Chat itself, including sending the email, is in how to turn Copilot Chat into your Outlook email assistant.
Why can’t I see Copilot in Word, Excel or Outlook?
Work through these in order. The first four need no admin rights, so start there.
Is it in the corner, or docked at the edge?
If you’re looking on the Home tab, you’re looking in the old place. Check the lower-right corner of the document, then the right-hand edge for a small docked icon, then press Alt + C (Windows), Cmd + Control + I (Mac) or F6. If the Copilot button takes focus, it was never missing. Right-click the button and choose Move to ribbon if you’d rather have it there.
What does your Copilot licence label say?
On a work or school account, sign in to m365.cloud.microsoft and scroll to the bottom of the home page. One of three labels appears under your name, as Microsoft explains in what Copilot licence do I have:
| Label | What you get in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote |
|---|---|
| Copilot Chat (Basic) | No Copilot in those apps. You still have Copilot Chat in Outlook, Teams, the browser and the Microsoft Copilot app |
| M365 Copilot (Basic) | Standard access to Copilot in those apps, without the paid licence. It can vary with service capacity during the day |
| M365 Copilot (Premium) | The paid licence, with priority access and the full experience, grounded in your work email, files and meetings |
If your label says Copilot Chat (Basic), no setting will bring the button back. Your organisation has to assign you a Microsoft 365 Copilot licence, which Microsoft now calls Microsoft Copilot. Microsoft’s public pages don’t say what decides whether an unlicensed account gets Copilot Chat (Basic) or M365 Copilot (Basic); reports in March 2026 linked it to organisation size. What the paid licence adds, and who needs one, is in Microsoft 365 Copilot vs Copilot Chat.
On a personal account, Copilot comes with Microsoft 365 Personal, Family or Premium, and only the subscription owner gets it in the desktop apps. People you’ve shared a Family plan with don’t.
Are you signed in with the right account?
Go to File, Account and check the account under User Information. If you’re signed in with a personal account, or with both a personal and a work account, the app may not find the licence you think you have. Sign in with the licensed work account, sign out of the other one, and restart the app.
Has the app picked up your licence?
A new licence can take some time to reach your apps, and Microsoft doesn’t give a figure. You don’t have to wait it out. Force a refresh:
- Windows: in any Microsoft 365 app, go to File, Account, select Update License, then close and restart every Microsoft 365 app you have open.
- Mac: open the app’s menu (for example Word), select About, then More Info… and Refresh License. Close your documents and restart the apps.
- Web: refresh the page. If Copilot still won’t appear in Word, Excel or PowerPoint for the web, check that your browser allows third-party cookies, because Copilot needs them to validate your licence there.
If you’re sure you’re licensed and it still isn’t there, Microsoft’s Copilot License Troubleshooter in the Get Help app checks the common licence problems for you.
Is the app up to date, and on a supported update channel?
Install the latest updates first. Then check the update channel under Product Information on the File, Account page. Copilot features don’t appear on Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel. From version 2606 in July 2026, those devices move to Monthly Enterprise Channel automatically, with no admin action needed, and Microsoft says they may become eligible for Copilot once it installs. If your device still shows Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel, it hasn’t taken that update yet, so ask IT. In the meantime, Word, Excel and PowerPoint for the web will have Copilot if your licence does.
Copilot also needs the Microsoft 365 subscription apps on a user-based licence. Microsoft’s Copilot requirements list Microsoft 365 Apps and rule out device-based licensing, and Copilot isn’t listed for one-off purchases such as Office 2024.
Are your privacy settings blocking Copilot?
Two privacy settings can hide Copilot in every app at once. On Windows, go to File, Account, then Account Privacy and Manage Settings. On a Mac, it’s Word, Preferences, Privacy. Make sure Turn on experiences that analyze your content is ticked, then scroll down and check All connected experiences is on too. If the settings are greyed out, your organisation controls them, and you’ll need IT.
If someone turned Copilot off on purpose, with the Enable Copilot checkbox on a personal account or the Outlook toggle, turn it back on the same way. Every off switch is in how to turn off Copilot in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook.
Is it an Outlook version or mailbox Copilot doesn’t support?
Outlook has a few gaps of its own:
- Classic Outlook: check File, Options, Advanced, Outlook panes, and make sure Show Apps in Outlook is ticked, because it controls whether Copilot appears in the app bar. A bug in builds 20026.20182 and later removed Copilot’s buttons from classic Outlook for a while. Microsoft lists it as fixed, so update Outlook, and if the buttons still don’t come back, try a new Outlook profile.
- Legacy Outlook for Mac isn’t supported. Copilot needs the current Outlook for Mac.
- The mailbox: Copilot works in your own mailbox and in shared or delegated mailboxes you have access to. It doesn’t work in Microsoft 365 group mailboxes or in mailboxes that aren’t hosted in Exchange Online.
- Plain-text email: Draft with Copilot doesn’t work on plain-text messages. In new Outlook, switch to HTML under Settings, Mail, Compose and reply.
Is Excel saying “Unsupported file state”?
Copilot in Excel no longer needs AutoSave on; Microsoft says it runs with AutoSave on or off. An “Unsupported file state” message appears when the workbook is checked out in SharePoint, or the site requires check-out, in which case Copilot in Excel for Windows and Mac won’t work for files from that site. Check the file back in, close and reopen it, or open it in Excel for the web. A workbook saved as Strict Open XML Spreadsheet triggers the same message; save it as a standard .xlsx.
Has your organisation turned Copilot off?
If none of the above fixes it, ask IT. The admin controls that switch Copilot off, from the connected experiences policy to Integrated Apps, are set out in the admin section of the turn-off guide. Firewalls that block Microsoft’s Copilot endpoints, such as copilot.cloud.microsoft, stop it working too. Admins can run Microsoft’s Copilot License Details diagnostic from aka.ms/CopilotLicenseDetails to check a person’s licence from their side.
Do your people know where Copilot is?
I’d sort this out before licensing anyone: every person should know where Copilot sits on their screen and which label they have. In 2026 Microsoft moved the button and changed who gets Copilot in the apps, and its own PowerPoint help page still points to the Home tab.
The explanation I’d send is a single page on the intranet. It shows the corner button with a screenshot and the Alt + C shortcut, and how to move it to the ribbon for anyone who’d rather have it there. It lists who in your organisation has M365 Copilot (Premium), M365 Copilot (Basic) and Copilot Chat (Basic), in plain words about what each one gets in Word, Excel and PowerPoint. And it tells Copilot Chat (Basic) users where they can still use Copilot today, in Outlook, Teams and the Microsoft Copilot app. Update it whenever Microsoft moves something, and link to it from your help desk’s Copilot answers.
I’d also treat the requests that come back as information. If the people asking hardest for Copilot in Word sit in one or two teams, you have your shortlist for the next round of licences.
Then the admin housekeeping. Check every device has taken version 2606 or later and shows Monthly Enterprise Channel, and check none of your privacy policies switch off connected experiences for people you’ve just licensed. When someone reports that Copilot has disappeared, check their label at m365.cloud.microsoft before anyone reinstalls Office.
Frequently asked questions
Why do some Microsoft help pages still say Copilot is on the Home tab? Some haven’t caught up. Microsoft’s Welcome to Copilot in PowerPoint page, last updated in May 2026, still describes a Copilot button on the Home tab, while the newer Copilot Dynamic Action Button page says Word, Excel and PowerPoint all use the corner button. Government cloud tenants (GCC, GCC High and DoD) only started getting the corner button in October 2026, so their screens may still match the older pages.
Can I use Copilot on a Word document if I only have Copilot Chat? Yes, outside Word. Open Copilot Chat in the Microsoft Copilot app or at m365.cloud.microsoft/chat and give it the file, because Copilot Chat works from the web and the files you share with it. It won’t edit the document inside Word for you; that needs an M365 Copilot (Basic) or (Premium) label.
Does Copilot in Excel work the same on an iPad or phone? No. Excel for Windows, Mac and the web has all three modes: Allow editing, Plan and Chat only. Excel for iPad has Chat and Plan, with editing rolling out. iPhone has Chat, with editing rolling out, and Android has Chat only.
