This article is for people with visual or cognitive impairments who use a screen reader program such as Microsoft's Narrator, JAWS, or NVDA with the Microsoft 365 products. This article is part of the Microsoft 365 screen reader support content set where you can find more accessibility information on our apps. For general help, visit Microsoft Support home or Fixes or workarounds for recent office issues.
Use Word with your keyboard and a screen reader to save your documents locally or in a shared location, and save them in a different file format. We have tested it with Narrator, JAWS, and NVDA, but it might work with other screen readers as long as they follow common accessibility standards and techniques.
Notes:
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New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.
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To learn more about screen readers, go to How screen readers work with Microsoft 365.
In this topic
Save a document locally
To save the changes you have made to a document, if AutoSave is not enabled, press Ctrl+S.
You can also rename the document, save it in another file format, or save it to another location.
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To save the document with another name or in another location or file format, press Alt+F, A.
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To select the save location, press the Tab key once, then press the Down arrow key until you hear the location you want.
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Press the Tab key until you hear "Enter file name here," and type the name you want.
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Press the Tab key. You hear: "Save as type Word document star dot docx."
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If you want to change the file type, press Spacebar, and then press the Down arrow key until you hear the file type you want. To select, press Enter.
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Press the Tab key until you hear "Save button," and then press Enter.
Add an online save location
OneDrive is available immediately when you start using Word, but you might need to add a SharePoint site manually before you can save there.
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To add a save location, press Alt+F, A, A. With Narrator, you hear: “Saving features, selected, add a place.” With JAWS, you hear: “Add a Place tab.”
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Press Y, 2 to select the SharePoint site option and then press Enter.
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When prompted, type the email address you use with your SharePoint site, and then press Enter.
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When prompted, type your password, and then press Enter.
The site is now available in the Save As dialog box in Word.
Save a document to OneDrive or SharePoint
Before you can, for example, share a document via OneDrive or SharePoint, you need to save it to one of those locations.
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Open the document you want to share.
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To open the Save As menu, press Alt+F, A. You hear: “Save As.”
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Press the Tab key to move to the Save As pane.
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To move to a OneDrive or SharePoint site in the Save As list, press the Up or Down arrow key until you hear the name of the site you want, and then press Enter. The focus changes to the folder list for the site you selected.
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Browse to the folder location that you want and press Enter to open the Save As dialog box. The focus moves to the File Name field.
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In the File Name field, type or edit the name of your document.
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Press the Tab key until you hear "Save button," and then press Enter.
After your document has been saved to a shared location, you can invite others to work on it.
Turn off AutoSave
If you don't want to save your document automatically to OneDrive or SharePoint, press Alt+1.
Turn on AutoSave
To automatically save your document to OneDrive or SharePoint, turn on AutoSave.
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Press Alt+1. You hear: "How do I turn on AutoSave."
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Press the Up or Down arrow key until you hear the cloud location you want, and press Enter.
If you hear a notification that a file with the same name already exists in the selected location, type a new name for the document, and press Enter.
Save a document as a PDF
Save your document as a PDF, so you can share it using multiple channels.
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To open the Save As menu, press Alt+F, A. You hear: “Save As.”
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Press the Tab key to move into the Save As pane.
The dialog box suggests the same location where you have saved your Word documents previously, on your PC or in an online location. For instructions on how to change the location, refer to Save a document to OneDrive or SharePoint.
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Press the Tab key until you hear "Save as type, Word document, star dot docx," and then press Spacebar. A list of supported file types opens.
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In the list, press the Down arrow key until you hear "PDF," and then press Spacebar. You hear: "Save as type, PDF."
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Press the Tab key until you hear "Save button," and then press Enter.
See also
Use a screen reader to insert and change text in Word
Use a screen reader to insert a picture or image in Word
Basic tasks using a screen reader with Word
Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365
Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Word
What's new in Microsoft 365: Release notes for Current Channel
Use Word for Mac with your keyboard and VoiceOver, the built-in macOS screen reader, to save your documents locally or in a shared location, and save them in a different file format.
Notes:
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New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.
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This topic assumes that you are using the built-in macOS screen reader, VoiceOver. To learn more about using VoiceOver, go to VoiceOver Getting Started Guide.
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We recommend you read and edit documents in Print Layout View. VoiceOver might not work reliably in other view modes.
In this topic
Add an online save location
OneDrive is available immediately when you sign in and start using Word for Mac, but you might need to add a SharePoint site manually before you can save there.
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Press Command+Shift+S. The Save As dialog box opens.
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Press the Tab key until you hear "Online locations button," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar.
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Press the Tab key until you hear: "Add a place, button." Press Control+Option+Spacebar.
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Press the Tab key until you hear "SharePoint button," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar.
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Type or paste the URL of your SharePoint folder, and then press the Tab key until you hear: "Next button."
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Press Control+Option+Spacebar. When prompted, type the email address you use with your SharePoint site, and then press Spacebar.
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When prompted, type your password, and then press Spacebar.
The site is now available in the Save As dialog box in Word for Mac.
Switch AutoSave off
AutoSave is enabled if you're working on a file that has been saved in OneDrive or SharePoint, and you've opened the file from the File menu. AutoSave is only available for Microsoft 365 subscribers.
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In your document, press F6 until you hear the currently selected tab, for example, "View, selected, tab."
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Press the Left arrow key until you hear: "Home, tab."
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Press Shift+Tab until you hear: "AutoSave, selected, toggle button."
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To switch AutoSave off, press Control+Option+Spacebar.
Note: If you switched AutoSave off, you need to save the document yourself. To save, press Command+S. To save the file with a different name or to a different location, press Command+Shift+S. Press the Tab key to navigate the Save As dialog box. Press the Down arrow key to browse the lists. Press Spacebar to select.
Save a copy of a document to your computer
You can save a copy of your document to your Mac.
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In the document you want to save, press Command+Shift+S. The Save As dialog box opens.
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Press the Tab key until you hear: "Desktop, Where, Pop-up button."
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Press the Down arrow key until you hear the location you want, and then press Spacebar.
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Press the Tab key until you hear "Save button," and then press Spacebar to save the document.
Save a document as a PDF
Save your document as a PDF so you can safely share it using multiple channels.
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In the document you want to save, press Command+Shift+S. The Save As dialog box opens.
The dialog box suggests the same location where you have saved your Word documents previously, on your Mac or an online location. For instructions on how to change the location, refer to Save a document to OneDrive or SharePoint.
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Press the Tab key until you hear "Word document," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar. The File Format menu opens.
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In the menu, press the Down arrow key until you hear "PDF," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar.
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To select the appropriate resolution for the PDF, press the Down arrow key until you hear the option you want, and then press Spacebar.
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Press the Tab key until you hear "Export button," and then press Control+Option+Spacebar. The document has been saved as a PDF.
Rename a document
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In the document you want to save, press Command+Shift+S. The Save As dialog box opens.
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Press the Tab key until you hear: " Save as, in dialog for," followed by the current document name. The focus is in the file name text field.
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Type a new name for your document.
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Press the Tab key until you hear "Save button," and then press Spacebar.
See also
Use a screen reader to insert and change text in Word
Use a screen reader to check spelling and grammar in Word
Basic tasks using a screen reader with Word
Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365
Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Word
What's new in Microsoft 365: Release notes for Current Channel
Use Word for iOS with VoiceOver, the built-in iOS screen reader, to save your document to OneDrive or as a copy from OneDrive to your device. You can also rename a document or save it as a PDF.
Notes:
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New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.
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This topic assumes that you are using the built-in iOS screen reader, VoiceOver. To learn more about using VoiceOver, visit Apple accessibility.
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We recommend you read and edit documents in Print Layout View. VoiceOver might not work reliably in other view modes.
In this topic
Save a document to OneDrive or SharePoint
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In the document you want to save, swipe right or left until you hear: "Close file, button." Double-tap the screen to select. You hear "Save changes to," followed by the name of the document.
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Swipe right until you hear: "Save, ellipsis, button." Double-tap the screen to select. You hear "Save as, file name, text field, is editing," followed by the document name.
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The current file name is selected and the on-screen keyboard appears at the bottom half of the screen. Type a name for the document using the on-screen keyboard.
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When done, slide one finger in the lower-right corner of the screen until you hear "Done." Double-tap the screen to select.
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The on-screen keyboard closes. Swipe left until you hear the location you want to save to, such as "OneDrive", and double-tap the screen to select.
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The focus moves to the file name field. If needed, use the on-screen keyboard to change the name.
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Swipe right until you hear the folder you want to save to, and double-tap to open it.
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Swipe left until you hear: "Save, button." Double-tap to select the button and save the document.
The document is saved and you return to the Recent view.
Switch AutoSave on or off
AutoSave is automatically on when you save a file to OneDrive or SharePoint.
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In the Editing view of your document, swipe left until you hear "File button," and then double-tap the screen.
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Swipe right until you hear "Autosave," followed by "On" or "Off."
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Double-tap the screen to toggle AutoSave on or off.
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To return to the Editing view, swipe left until you hear "Done button," and then double-tap the screen.
Note: If you switched AutoSave off, you need to save the document yourself. In your document, swipe left until you hear "File button," and then double-tap the screen. Swipe right until you hear "Save button," and then double-tap the screen.
Save a copy of a document to your device
You can save a copy of the document to your device. The changes you make to a local copy won't affect the original file in the cloud storage.
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In the document, swipe left until you hear "File button," and then double-tap the screen.
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Swipe right until you hear "Save a copy button," and double-tap the screen.
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The focus moves to the file name text field. If needed, use the on-screen keyboard to type a new file name. When done, slide one finger in the lower-right corner of the screen until you hear: "Done." Double-tap the screen to select.
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Swipe right until you hear "iPhone button," and then double-tap the screen.
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To save a copy of the document, swipe left until you hear: "Save button." Double-tap the screen to select. The copy is saved.
Save a document as a PDF
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In the document, swipe left until you hear "File button," and then double-tap the screen.
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Swipe right until you hear "Export button," and double-tap the screen.
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Swipe right until you hear "PDF, star, PDF button," and then double-tap the screen.
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The focus moves to the file name text field. If necessary, use the on-screen keyboard to change the file name. When done, slide one finger at the bottom of the screen until you hear "Done," and then double-tap the screen.
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By default, the PDF file is saved on your device. If you want to change the location, swipe right or left until you hear "Places, back button," and then double-tap the screen.
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Swipe right or left until you hear "Export button," and then double-tap the screen.
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If you hear "Alert, Allow online file conversion," swipe right until you hear "Allow button," and then double-tap the screen.
Rename a document
You can change the name of a saved document.
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In the Recent view, swipe right or left until you hear the document you want to rename.
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Swipe right once. You hear: "File button, actions available." Double-tap the screen. You hear the file name.
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Swipe right until you hear: "Rename button," and then double-tap the screen. You hear: "Text field, is editing."
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Swipe right until you hear: "Clear text, button," and then double-tap the screen. The old name is cleared.
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Use the on-screen keyboard at the bottom of the screen to type a new name for the document.
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When done, swipe left until you hear "Rename button," and then double-tap the screen.
See also
Use a screen reader to insert and change text in Word
Use a screen reader to check spelling and grammar in Word
Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365
Basic tasks using a screen reader with Word
Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Word
What's new in Microsoft 365: Release notes for Current Channel
Use Word for Android with TalkBack, the built-in Android screen reader, to save your document to OneDrive or SharePoint, save a copy of a document from an online location to your device, or rename a document.
Notes:
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New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.
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For touch capabilities in Word for Android, go to Word for Android touch guide
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This topic assumes that you are using the built-in Android screen reader, TalkBack. To learn more about using TalkBack, go to Android accessibility.
In this topic
Add an online save location
OneDrive is available immediately when you start using Word for Android, but you might need to add a SharePoint site manually before you can save there.
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In your document, swipe left until you hear "File button," and then double-tap the screen. You hear: "File menu, Open."
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Swipe right until you hear: "Save as, button." Double-tap the screen to select.
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Swipe left until you hear "Add a place, documents, Connect to cloud storage," and then double-tap the screen.
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Swipe left until you hear "SharePoint button," and then double-tap the screen.
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You hear an example of a SharePoint site link. Double-tap the screen.
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Use the on-screen keyboard to type the URL of your SharePoint site. To close the keyboard, swipe down-then-left. You can also paste the URL in the text field.
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Swipe right until you hear "Submit button," and then double-tap the screen.
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If prompted, double-tap the screen and then type the email address you use with your SharePoint site. To close the keyboard, swipe down-then-left.
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Swipe right until you hear "Password, editing," and then double-tap the screen. Use the on-screen keyboard to type your password. To close the keyboard, swipe down-then-left.
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Swipe right until you hear "Sign in button," and then double-tap the screen. The new save location is now available in the list of save locations.
Save a document to OneDrive
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In your document, swipe left until you hear "File, button," and then double-tap the screen.
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Swipe right until you hear "Save As button," and then double-tap the screen. You hear the document name, followed by "Edit box."
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If you want to change the file name, double-tap the screen to open the on-screen keyboard. Use the keyboard to first delete the old name and then type a new file name. When you are done, swipe down-then-left to close the keyboard.
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Swipe left or right to browse the save location options until you find your OneDrive account, and then double-tap the screen.
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Swipe left or right until you hear: "Save button." Double-tap the screen to save your document. After saving, the File menu closes and the focus returns to the document.
Tip: After you have saved the document to OneDrive, all changes will be saved there when you select Save, unless you save the document to a new location.
Switch Autosave on or off
Autosave is automatically on when you save a file to OneDrive or SharePoint.
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In the Editing view of your document, swipe left until you hear "File, button," and then double-tap the screen.
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Swipe left until you hear "Settings button," and then double-tap the screen.
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Swipe right until you hear "Autosave, Automatically save files," followed by "On" or "Off."
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Double-tap the screen to toggle Autosave on or off.
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To return to the Editing view, swipe down-then-left.
Note: If you switched Autosave off, you need to save the document yourself. In your document, swipe left or right until you hear "Save button," and then double-tap the screen.
Save a copy to your device
You can save a copy of the document on your device.
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In the Editing view of your document, swipe right or left until TalkBack announces: "File button." Double-tap the screen to select. The File menu opens.
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Swipe right until you hear "Save as button," and double-tap the screen. The Save as menu opens with the focus on the file name field.
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The focus moves to the new file name text field. If you want a new name for the document, type a name using the on-screen keyboard.
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Swipe right or left until you hear "This device, documents," and then double-tap the screen.
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Swipe left until you find the folder you want, and then double-tap the screen.
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To save a copy of the document, swipe right until you hear: "Save button." Double-tap the screen to select. The copy is saved.
Rename a document
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In the Editing view of your Word document, swipe right or left until TalkBack announces: "File button." Double-tap the screen to select. The File menu opens.
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Swipe right until TalkBack announces: "Save button." Double-tap the screen to select. You hear: "Save. File menu close."
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To rename the document, swipe right until you hear "Rename this file button," and double-tap the screen. Type a name for the document using the on-screen keyboard. To save the new name, slide one finger at the bottom of the screen until you hear "Done," then lift it (and double-tap the screen if needed). The file is renamed.
See also
Use a screen reader to insert and change text in Word
Use a screen reader to check spelling and grammar in Word
Set up your device to work with accessibility in Microsoft 365
Basic tasks using a screen reader with Word
Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Word
What's new in Microsoft 365: Release notes for Current Channel
Use Word for the web with your keyboard a screen reader to download your document from OneDrive to your PC or rename a document. We have tested it with Narrator in Microsoft Edge and JAWS and NVDA in Chrome, but it might work with other screen readers and web browsers as long as they follow common accessibility standards and techniques.
Notes:
-
New Microsoft 365 features are released gradually to Microsoft 365 subscribers, so your app might not have these features yet. To learn how you can get new features faster, join the Office Insider program.
-
To learn more about screen readers, go to How screen readers work with Microsoft 365.
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When you use Word for the web, we recommend that you use Microsoft Edge as your web browser. Because Word for the web runs in your web browser, the keyboard shortcuts are different from those in the desktop program. For example, you’ll use Ctrl+F6 instead of F6 for jumping in and out of the commands. Also, common shortcuts like F1 (Help) and Ctrl+O (Open) apply to the web browser – not Word for the web.
In this topic
Download a copy of a document to your computer
Word for the web automatically saves all your work to your OneDrive folder in the cloud. The changes you make in the copy of your Word for the web document on your computer won't affect the original version in OneDrive. You can download your document as a Word, PDF, or ODT file.
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Open the Word for the web document you want to download.
For instructions on how to open and sign in to Word for the web and how to open a document, refer to the sections "Open Word for the web and sign in" and "Open a recent document" in Basic tasks using a screen reader with Word.
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Do one of the following:
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To download a copy of the document in Word format, press Alt+Windows logo key+F, A, C.
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To download a copy of the document in PDF format, press Alt+Windows logo key+F, A, P.
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To download a copy of the document in ODT format, press Alt+Windows logo key+F, A, T.
You hear: "Dialog, Microsoft Word for the web." The focus is on the Download button.
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Press Enter to select. The dialog box closes. You hear "Notification text. What do you want to do with," followed by the document name.
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Press Alt+Windows logo key+N. You hear: "Open button."
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Press the Tab key until you hear "Save button," and then press Enter. The file is downloaded to the Download folder on your computer.
Save a document to another location
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In your document, press Alt+Windows logo key+F, A, A. The Save As dialog box opens.
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The focus is placed on the Name field of the Save As dialog box. Type a new file name if needed.
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Press the Tab key repeatedly until you hear “Save to another folder button,” and then press Spacebar to open the folder selection dialog box.
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To select a new location to save the file to, press the Tab key until you hear the name of the folder you want, or “New folder.” When you hear the option you want, press Spacebar. If you selected “New folder,” type a name for the new folder, then press the Tab key until you hear "Create button," and then press Enter.
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Press the Tab key until you hear “Save button,” and then press Spacebar to save the document.
Rename a document
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In your document, press Alt+Windows logo key+F, A, R. The Rename dialog box opens. The focus is on the Name text field.
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Type a new file name.
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Press the Tab key until you hear “OK button,” and then press Spacebar to rename the file.
See also
Use a screen reader to insert and change text in Word
Use a screen reader to check spelling and grammar in Word
Basic tasks using a screen reader with Word
Use a screen reader to explore and navigate Word
What's new in Microsoft 365: Release notes for Current Channel
Technical support for customers with disabilities
Microsoft wants to provide the best possible experience for all our customers. If you have a disability or questions related to accessibility, please contact the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk for technical assistance. The Disability Answer Desk support team is trained in using many popular assistive technologies and can offer assistance in English, Spanish, French, and American Sign Language. Please go to the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk site to find out the contact details for your region.
If you are a government, commercial, or enterprise user, please contact the enterprise Disability Answer Desk.
