How to save Word files locally by default (instead of OneDrive)

Microsoft Word can save your online documents to OneDrive, which can be ideal for data redundancy and remote access. But it’s just as important to save your files locally when you can, and it’s possible to save your documents locally by default in Word.

Why would you want to do that? For starters, Microsoft’s cloud storage platform offers no data privacy guarantees, for example from the US government. Another reason is that you may not be able to access your files without Internet, such as when traveling or when your home network experiences an outage. Additionally, it can cause version conflicts when documents are out of sync for some reason.

Fortunately, you can configure Word to save files locally by default:

Joel Lee / Foundry

Normally when you select File > Save in Microsoft Word, it will offer to save the document to OneDrive by default. To change this so that it always starts in a local folder, click File > Optionsaccess the To safeguard In the left panel, check the “Save to computer by default” box, then click “OK” to apply the setting.

Now, every time you save a new document, Microsoft Word will automatically suggest “This PC” as a storage location.

Further reading: 12 Essential Microsoft Word Features to Know