How-to guide
How to open a .pub file without Microsoft Publisher.
A .pub file is a Microsoft Publisher document, and with Publisher shutting down in 2026, plenty of people need to open one without it. There are a few ways. Which is right depends on one question: do you want to keep the file exactly as it is, or keep editing it?
Short answer: to keep a .pub exactly as it looks and read or share it anywhere, convert it to PDF. To keep editing it, open it in a Publisher alternative like LibreOffice Draw or Scribus, or join the early access waitlist for the PubKeep desktop app, now in beta. For a folder of files, convert them in bulk rather than one at a time.
Five ways
What are the best ways to open a .pub file without Publisher?
The most reliable way is to convert the .pub to PDF, which keeps every page exactly as Publisher drew it. You can also open it in LibreOffice Draw or Scribus for free but imperfect editing, or use an old copy of Publisher as a stopgap. To keep editing them with high fidelity, the PubKeep desktop app is in early access, and you can join the waitlist to get in. Here they are, ranked.
Convert it to PDF
Best for keeping your pagesThe most reliable way to keep a Publisher file. A PDF holds every page exactly as Publisher drew it, so you can view it on any phone, computer, or tablet with no special app. In other words, converting is also the simplest way to view a .pub file. The PubKeep Converter makes exact PDFs, page for page and font for font, and takes a whole folder at once.
- Nothing to install. Drop your files in the browser and download PDFs.
- Bulk by design: a folder of .pub files, subfolders and all, in one go.
- Exact output, with bleeds and rotated frames intact, nothing re-flowed.
- First 3 files free with just your email. Then one-time packs from $49 for 50 files up to $299 for 1,000, credits never expire.
Open it in LibreOffice Draw or Scribus
Free, editable, imperfectLibreOffice Draw and Scribus are both free, open-source apps that can open and edit many .pub files. They are real options if you want to keep editing and do not mind fixing things up. Both read the closed Publisher format from the outside, through the same open-source engine (libmspub), so fonts get substituted and spacing shifts, and complex bulletins and booklets often need cleanup.
- Free and available for Windows, macOS, and Linux.
- Good for simple, one-off files you are willing to touch up.
- Fidelity varies file to file, they reflow the layout, and each opens one at a time.
Recent versions of Affinity Publisher can open .pub too, but users report it reflows the layout badly and leaves many Publisher features unsupported, so the result is often unusable.
Use an old copy of Publisher, if you have one
StopgapIf a perpetual Publisher 2016, 2019, or 2021 is still installed somewhere, it opens .pub files perfectly, because it is the real thing. Treat it as a bridge, not a plan: Microsoft ends support on October 13, 2026, and the app is tied to that one aging machine. Use it to open your files and convert them while you still can.
Convert to Word
Microsoft's suggestion, with caveatsMicrosoft points people toward Word. It can work for a plain, text-heavy document, but Publisher layouts do not map onto Word, so multi-column pages, precise placement, and fold-over booklets tend to fall apart. If your file is a designed page, a PDF will keep it far more faithfully than Word will.
Keep editing natively with PubKeep desktop
Early accessFor when you need to keep changing your files after Publisher is gone, the PubKeep desktop app opens the .pub format natively and keeps it editable, no copy of Publisher and no Windows required. It is in early access: beta testers are opening and editing their own .pub files today and shaping where it goes next. It aims for high-fidelity output, page for page, and runs the same on Windows and Mac, offline, rather than reflowing your layout the way importers do. It is free while in beta, then a one-time $99 at launch, with no subscription. Join the early access waitlist to get in.
Still deciding?
Which method should I choose?
Choose by what you need. To read, share, or archive the file, convert it to PDF, the format Microsoft itself recommends for keeping your work. For a whole folder, convert in bulk rather than one at a time. To keep editing, use a Publisher alternative like LibreOffice Draw or Scribus, or join the early access waitlist for the PubKeep desktop app, now in beta.
You want to read, share, or archive the file. Convert it to PDF. It is the one format that keeps the page exactly and opens everywhere, and it is the format Microsoft itself recommends for keeping your work.
You have a whole folder of files. Do not open them one at a time. Convert the folder in bulk so you keep the same structure and get a report of anything that needs a second look.
You need to keep editing. Use a Publisher alternative like LibreOffice Draw or Scribus to edit today, or join the early access waitlist for the PubKeep desktop app, now in beta, which opens your existing .pub files and keeps them editable. See Microsoft Publisher alternatives for the full rundown.
Questions
Opening .pub files, answered.
A .pub file is a Microsoft Publisher document, the layout format Publisher (or MS Publisher, as it is often shortened) saves in. It holds a designed page, like a bulletin, flyer, or newsletter, rather than plain text, which is why apps like Word open it poorly. With Publisher retiring in 2026, the safest way to keep a .pub is to convert it to PDF so it opens anywhere.
Yes. LibreOffice Draw is free and will open most .pub files, though the layout may shift. PubKeep converts your first 3 files to exact PDFs free, with just your email.
The simplest .pub viewer is a PDF. Convert your file and it opens in any browser, on any phone or computer, with nothing to install, showing the page exactly as Publisher drew it. PubKeep converts your first 3 files free, so you can view a .pub in about a minute without Publisher.
Only if you keep it as a fixed page. Converting to PDF keeps every page exactly as Publisher drew it, page for page and font for font. Tools that reopen the file for editing, like LibreOffice Draw or Word, usually reflow the text and break the design.
Most tools open one file at a time. PubKeep takes a whole folder at once, subfolders included, and returns a matching zip of PDFs plus a report of anything that failed.
A PDF is a finished page, not an editable layout. To keep editing your .pub files, the PubKeep desktop app opens the Publisher format natively, no copy of Publisher needed. It is in early access now, free while in beta, with a one-time $99 at launch and no subscription. Join the early access waitlist to get in.
No. None of these methods require Publisher, which matters because Publisher is going away in 2026. The PubKeep Converter converts your files without it, and the PubKeep desktop app, now in early access, reads and edits the .pub format on its own. Join the early access waitlist to get in.
Keep reading
Related guides.
Microsoft Publisher end of life
The dates, what changes, and the three ways to keep your work.
Microsoft Publisher alternatives
What to move to, for editing versus just keeping your files.
Publisher for churches and nonprofits
Save years of bulletins and newsletters before the deadline.
Convert .pub to PDF
The bulk converter, pricing, and how it works.
Ten minutes
Open your .pub files by converting them.
First 3 files free, just your email. See how the converter works.