How to open a .pub file without Publisher
A .pub file is a document made in Microsoft Publisher: usually a newsletter, flyer, bulletin, card, poster or brochure. Without Publisher, your computer doesn't know what to do with it, and Microsoft doesn't make a viewer for it. Microsoft is also retiring Publisher in October 2026, so more people will find themselves with .pub files and nothing to open them with.
Here's how to open one anyway, on whatever device you have.
The quickest way: in your web browser
- Go to publican.app in any up-to-date browser: Chrome, Edge, Safari or Firefox.
- Drag your .pub file onto the page, or click Choose a file and pick it.
- Every page of the document appears, laid out as it was in Publisher. Scroll through it, zoom in, and select and copy text as you would on a web page.
- To print it or keep a copy, open the Menu and choose Print or save as PDF (see saving a .pub file as PDF).
It's free, there's nothing to install or sign up for, and the file is never uploaded: it's read inside your browser, on your device. It opens files from every version of Publisher, from Publisher 2.0 (1993) to Publisher for Microsoft 365.
On Windows
If Publisher is installed, double-click the file as usual. If it isn't (or it's gone from your Microsoft 365 subscription), open the file in your browser as above.
To open .pub files with a double-click without Publisher, install Publican as an app: in Chrome or Edge, open publican.app, then choose Install as an app from the Menu. After that, .pub files open in Publican from File Explorer, even without an internet connection.
On a Mac
There has never been a Mac version of Publisher, and Pages, Keynote and Word for Mac can't open .pub files. Open the file in Safari, Chrome or Firefox with Publican instead. In Chrome you can install it as an app, so .pub files open from Finder.
On a Chromebook
Open publican.app in Chrome and choose the file from the Files app. Choose Install as an app from the Menu to open .pub files straight from the Files app, and offline.
On an iPad or phone
Open publican.app in your browser and tap Choose a file, then pick the file from Files, iCloud Drive or wherever your email app saved it. You can read every page, zoom in, and print or save it as PDF. Editing is designed for a computer with a mouse or trackpad.
If it doesn't look quite right
- Fonts. Publican draws documents with free fonts that closely match the ones Publisher used. If you're on Chrome or Edge and have Microsoft Office installed, choose Use my installed fonts from the Menu to use the originals.
- Very old files. Files from Publisher 2.0, 3.0 and 97 open with some limits, and Publican tells you when it has opened one.
- Still wrong? Email the file to [email protected]. It's used only to fix the problem, then deleted.
Other ways to open .pub files
- LibreOffice Draw (free, for Windows, Mac and Linux) can import .pub files. It's a large install, and layouts often come out wrong: in our tests, about half of pages had missing or misplaced content.
- Online converters turn a .pub file into a PDF, but you upload the file to their server, and free use is often limited to a few files a day.
- Publisher itself, if you bought it outright: Microsoft says it can still be installed and used after October 2026, on Windows.
Common questions
- Can I edit a .pub file without Publisher?
- Yes. Open it in Publican and press Edit. You can change and format text, add text boxes, and replace, move and resize pictures and shapes.
- Can I save it back as a .pub file?
- Not yet. Save it as a PDF to print or share, or as a .publican file to keep editing it in Publican later.
- Is it really free?
- Yes. There's no paid version, no sign-up and no limit on how many files you open.
- Is my file private?
- Yes. The file is read by code running in your browser tab and is never sent anywhere.