9 Best to Repair Corrupted Word Files on Windows

Losing a Word document can be extremely frustrating and troublesome. When attempting to recover it, you might first try Microsoft's troubleshooting area or other online tools. To assist you, we've compiled a list of the best Windows word processing repair tools to help you easily fix and restore your documents.

Top 9 Best Windows Word Repair Tools

In this part, we'll show you 9 of the best Word repair tools to help you recover or fix your documents so you can continue with your writing.

1. Best 1: Fixo Tool
2. Best 2: Stellar Phoenix Word Repair
3. Best 3: Kernel for Word
4. Best 4: DataNumen Word Repair
5. Best 5: Remo Repair Word
6. Best 6: S2 Recovery Tools
7. Best 7: DocRepair
8. Best 8: Repair My Word
9. Best 9: Microsoft's Open and Repair Feature

We tested these Word repair tools across several parameters, such as OS compatibility, performance, supported MS versions, file types, and so on. Here's a snapshot of the test results:

Level 1: Fixo Tools

Many might not know that the Fixo Document Repair tool can mend damaged Word documents for various reasons. Thanks to this powerful program, recovering a severely corrupted Word file has never been easier. This software can also repair office files, photos, and videos.

Unlike other tools to repair Word files, Fixo Document Repair automatically fixes any corrupt, damaged, or unreadable Word files while scanning and previewing them.

• Lists corrupted files with their names, locations, types, and sizes
• The Fixo tool identifies the hard drives on your system and lets you repair Word Online files right away
• The app can help you fix a wide range of documents

Follow the steps below to open and repair a Word document:

Step 1: Download and launch Fixo on your computer or laptop. Select "File Repair" to fix corrupted Office documents, including Word, Excel, and PDFs. Click "Add File" to choose the damaged document.

Step 2. Click “Repair All” to fix multiple files. To repair a single file, hover your pointer over the target file and select “Repair.” You can also preview the document by clicking on the eye icon.

Step 3. Click “Save” to save the selected files. Choose “Save All” to save all repaired files. Select “View Repairs” to locate the folder with the repaired files.

Advantages:

• Repair most file types
• Recover damaged files from disks, partitions, and other storage devices
• Support for the latest Windows operating systems

Disadvantages:

No free version available.

Level 2: Stellar Phoenix Word Repair

Stellar Phoenix Word Repair is one of the most effective tools in its category, offering a user-friendly solution to restore corrupted Microsoft Word files. The program can recover original text, fonts, hyperlinks, images, headers, and footers. It provides three repair types: Simple Recovery, Raw Recovery, and Advanced Recovery. The Microsoft Word Repair mode aids in fixing web images and videos embedded in the document. The demo version of Stellar Phoenix Word Repair lets you preview the recovered Word documents. However, to retrieve the data, you'll need to purchase the full product.

Compatibility: Microsoft Word 2013, 2010, 2007, 2003, 2002, and 2000;

Advantages:

• Preserve original formatting and structure of the file
• File location functionality
• Preview of the repaired document

@Stellar Data Recovery Inc's Stellar Phoenix Word Repair tool is fast, easy, and effective. (Learn more at https://t.co/ozzRKnLdAx) pic.twitter.com/6qTX8naEzG

— MCHSoft (@mhcsoft) April 22, 2017

Disadvantages:

• Do not use the MS during the scan

Third Place: Kernel for Word

You might have forgotten to back up your Word file, and now you've lost or corrupted an important document. Kernel for Word could be your savior. It retrieves all information from the files, including text, images, hyperlinks, formatting, and more. The original layout of the file is preserved during the recovery process. Additionally, it deals with multiple Word document types such as .doc, .docx, .dotm, .dotx, .dot, and .rtf, along with extended file names.

Compatibility: Windows 98/Me/2000/XP/2003/Vista/Server 2008/7

Advantages:

• Backup ignored files
• Restore file information
• Handle different types of words

Disadvantages:

• Advanced features require a subscription

4th Place: DataNumen Word Repair

DataNumen Word Repair is advertised as the world's best MS Office Word recovery and repair tool, with a full refund guarantee if data cannot be recovered. The program employs innovative methods to restore your Word files, helping you minimize the loss from file corruption. This excellent utility supports Microsoft Word 6.0, 95, 97, 2000/XP/2003/2007/2010/2013 and handles both DOC and DOCX formats. It can recover original content, including graphics and formatting. Additionally, it retrieves hyperlinks, bullet or numbered lists, and tables during the recovery process.

Compatibility: Windows 98/Me/NT/2000/XP/2003/Vista/Server 2008/7/8/10

Advantages:

• Support for .doc, .docx, .dotx, and .rtf formats
• Recover online or corrupted files
• Repair Word files from versions 95-2013

Disadvantages:

• Cannot restore password-protected files

Top 5: Remo Repair Word

Remo Repair Word makes recovery of Microsoft Office Word documents much simpler. After fixing a corrupted file, you can save it as a new, clean Word document. It supports both .doc and .docx file extensions. It can repair text, formatting, objects, hyperlinks, and more, making it quite user-friendly. Remo Repair Word is compatible with 32-bit and 64-bit hardware architectures on both Windows and Mac computers.

Compatibility: Windows 8, Windows 7, Vista, and XP

Advantages:

• Support for .doc and .docs formats
• Repair of hyperlinks and other corrupted text
• Preview of recovered data

Disadvantages:

• Requires MS Office to recover Word files

#6: S2 Recovery Tools

With the program recommended by Microsoft, you can repair damaged Word files. With S2 Recovery Tools, you can quickly access these methods and open corrupted Microsoft Word DOC and DOCX files in five different ways. Another feature is the Graphical User Interface (GUI) for finding and recovering deleted, corrupted or lost damaged files. Soon, we will also implement the ability to repair faulty Word files that can be opened according to Microsoft's recommendations.

Compatibility: Windows 2000/XP/2003/Vista/Server 2008/7

Advantages:

• Repair .doc and .docx files
• Support for various Windows operating systems
• Ability to search for deleted corrupted file versions

Disadvantages:

• Get free software after 14 days

Top 7. DocRepair

Another useful document recovery tool is DocRepair, which is specifically designed to handle corrupted, damaged, or inaccessible Word documents. The program supports Microsoft Word 6.0, Word 95, 97, 2000, XP, 2003, 2007, 2010, 2013, and 2016 for Windows. With this utility, you can repair corrupted documents saved in .docx and .doc formats in Word 2007. If Word becomes stuck and the document is already open, this tool can assist in reopening it. It also enables you to recover documents from damaged hard drives and faulty sectors.

Compatibility: Windows 95/98/2000/XP/2003/Vista/NT 4

Advantages:

- Recover damaged and unreadable files - Supports different versions of Word - Supports .doc and .docs formats

Drawbacks:

To see all features, purchase the full version.

8th Place: Repair My Word

"Repair My Word" is an excellent, free, and easy-to-use tool for repairing corrupted Word files (only those with the .doc file extension). The program generates error-free content that's ready to be saved in a new Microsoft Word document. Even if it doesn't support the .docx files from Office 2007, you can use this program to save your data from a damaged document. It can fix issues from Microsoft Word 6.0, Word 95/97/2000/XP/2003, and Word 2003.

Compatibility: Windows 6.0/95/97/2000/XP/2003

Advantages:

It has a simple user interface, and it supports MS Word files in versions 6.0, 95, 2000, X, and 2003.

Disadvantages:

* Works only with .doc files, not with Word documents that have the .docx extension

Ninth: Microsoft's “Open and Repair” feature

When you open a document, Microsoft Word will automatically run the “Open and Repair” tool if it detects any issues. You can also use the “Open and Repair” option when opening a document. This is especially useful if you want to save a document in a different file format. A corrupted document may not open after being saved in another file format.

Compatibility: Windows 95/98/NT/2000/XP/Vista/7/8

Advantages:

• Automatic activation
• Saving data in various formats
• Swift file checking and repair

Disadvantages:

Complex User Interface

5 Common Reasons Why Your Word Document Might Be Corrupted

Common causes of issues with Word documents include:

Hardware malfunction: A Word document can become corrupt due to various hardware-related issues. One risky practice is running resource-intensive applications on older hardware.

Viruses: These are malicious programs that "attach" themselves to your files and folders, corrupting or deleting the data inside. Highly aggressive viruses can even crash your entire system.

System updates: Windows 10 is notorious for forcing system updates on users whether they want them or not. Reports have emerged of upgrades installing themselves while users were working in Microsoft Word. Typically, these updates kick in when the computer is restarted.

Unsaved work: After a long day, you might forget to save a document before shutting down. When you try to find it later, you might be surprised to discover that it is corrupted, missing some content, or simply nowhere to be found.

System crashes: These are almost inevitable as systems strain under the load.

How to Choose the Best Word Repair Tool

Now that you've gone through the best text repair tools above, it's time to pick one. But how will you choose? That's a big question. You can read through the following tips to get some ideas for yourself.

• Usability: The repair tool must be user-friendly. Usability refers to the aspects that make the tool more convenient for the user. While many repair tools can be hard to grasp due to their complex algorithms, some tools excel in this aspect.
• Pricing: Pricing is quite significant. Sometimes, you might not have a budget to afford expensive repair tools; it's noteworthy that some tools in the market are overpriced. However, the tools discussed here do not fall into that category. So, choose wisely.
• Performance: Performance is the most crucial aspect. What's the point of investing money if the repair tool doesn't deliver the performance or value for money you expect? Therefore, ensure that the tool you use has high standards of performance.
• Time: Time is another critical factor. Why? When you're drafting an essay or creating an official document with a tight deadline, you wouldn't want to waste any time. Hence, make sure your tool is efficient and can fix files instantly rather than taking a long time!

Frequently Asked Questions About Word Repair Tools

Do you have any questions about the text repair tool? Here are some common queries for your reference:

1. How to clean up Word?

Select the text that you want to return to its original formatting. On the Home tab, in the Font group, click Clear All Formatting . On the Home tab, in the Font group, click Clear All Formatting . On the Message tab, in the Basic Text group, click Clear All Formatting .

**2. How to fix unreadable content in Word?**

Please follow the instructions as outlined in Microsoft Word.

Step 1: Click the File tab, choose Open on the left, and then click Browse on the right.

Step 3: Select “Recover Text from Any File” from the drop-down options.

Step 4: Wait a moment before proceeding.

3) How can I fix a corrupted Word file?

To repair a Word document, follow these steps:

Step 1: Select the corrupted Word document through the right-click menu.

Step 3: Wait for the previous version of the document to load in a pop-up, and then make your selection. Don't forget to click “OK.”

Conclusions

Microsoft Word is an essential tool, but it's also prone to damage and corruption. While you might lose formatting and content, you can still access the document. For this, you need the best Word repair tools/software. Hence, we introduce nine online Word file document repair programs. You can get a free copy of the chosen Word file repair software. Additionally, we provide a full step-by-step guide on how to quickly recover and fix Word files using “Stellar Fix for Word.”