Microsoft will break Office apps on older iPhones & Macs in June
Microsoft will break Office apps on older iPhones & Macs in June
https://www.cultofmac.com/news/microsoft-office-apps-on-older-iphones-and-macs
Publish Date: 2026-06-03 19:36:00
Source Domain: www.cultofmac.com
If you use an older Mac, iPhone or iPad, Microsoft might be about to break your Office apps. Starting July 13, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and OneNote will stop letting you edit, save or create new files unless you meet certain requirements. You’ll still be able to open and print documents, but that’s it.
The move affects more people than you might think. If you’re running anything older than iOS 17 or macOS 11 Big Sur, your Office apps will mostly be defunct. Microsoft calls it “reduced functionality mode,” which is a fancy way of saying your Office apps will lose editing functionality.
Microsoft Office apps stop working on older iPhones, Macs
Microsoft’s looming compatibility cutoff serves as a reminder that software support can become just as important as hardware upgrades. In this case, some Apple users will find that popular Microsoft Office apps lose core features on their aging machines, effectively turning productivity software into little more than a document viewer.
The change reflects a broader trend across the tech industry, where companies increasingly prioritize newer platforms to support AI features, security updates and modern development frameworks. That’s all good, but the flipside is that these decisions can leave aging devices functional but increasingly constrained.
“This issue affects both Microsoft 365 subscribers on macOS, iPhone, and iPad, and those with non-subscription software, including Office 2021 or Office 2019 on macOS,” Microsoft said in a support document. “For most users, updating your OS, and updating your apps will resolve it.”
How to check if you’re affected
Will this Microsoft clampdown affect you? If you are on macOS 12 Monterey or iOS 17 or later, you’ll be just fine — although you might need to update your Microsoft software. But if your devices are too old to run these OS versions, there’s no update coming.
(To check, do the following: On your Mac, go…
