How to open a Publisher .pub file on a Mac

Someone has emailed you a newsletter, a flyer or a club price list as a .pub file, and your Mac doesn’t know what to do with it. That isn’t a setting you’ve missed. Microsoft Publisher was only ever made for Windows, and Microsoft retired it in October 2026, so there is no Mac version to install. Pages, Preview, Keynote and Word for Mac can’t open the format either.

Here are the options that do work, quickest first.

Option 1: convert it in your browser (quickest, free)

Altto’s Publisher converter works in Safari, Chrome and Firefox on any Mac. The file is read inside the browser tab, so it never leaves your computer.

1. Open altto.co.uk/pub-to-word and drop the .pub file on the box.
2. Check the recovered text, then choose Download as Word or Download as PDF.
3. Open the result in Pages, Word for Mac or Preview.

What you get: the words in reading order and the pictures. What you don’t: the exact layout, fonts and columns. For most emailed flyers and newsletters, the words are what you need.

Option 2: LibreOffice Draw (free, keeps more layout)

LibreOffice is a free office suite for Mac. Its Draw app can import many Publisher files and show them close to their original layout.

1. Download LibreOffice from libreoffice.org and install it. The first time you open it, macOS may ask you to confirm in System Settings → Privacy & Security.
2. Open LibreOffice, choose Open File and pick the .pub file. It opens in Draw.
3. Choose File → Export as PDF to make a copy that opens anywhere.

Results depend on the file. Simple flyers often come through well; complex newsletters can shift text boxes or swap fonts. Check the result before relying on it.

Option 3: ask the sender for a PDF

If the file came from someone who still has Publisher on a Windows PC, the simplest fix is to ask them to send it again as a PDF (File → Export → Create PDF/XPS in Publisher). A PDF keeps the design exactly and opens in Preview. If you then need to edit it, Altto’s PDF to Word converter works on a Mac too.

What doesn’t work

• Renaming the file to .docx or .pdf. It only changes the label, and the file still won’t open.
• Word for Mac or Pages. Neither has ever opened Publisher files.
• Running Publisher in a Windows virtual machine (Parallels and similar) is possible if you already have Windows and an old copy of Publisher, but it is a lot of cost and setup for opening a few files.

Not sure what a file is? See which app opens which file.

Microsoft and Publisher are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Other product names are trademarks of their owners. Altto is not affiliated with or endorsed by any of them.