Applies ToExcel for Microsoft 365 PowerPoint for Microsoft 365 Excel 2024 PowerPoint 2024 Excel 2021 PowerPoint 2021 Excel 2019 PowerPoint 2019 Excel 2016 PowerPoint 2016

If the AutoRecover option is turned on, you can automatically save versions of your file while you’re working on it. How you recover something depends on when you saved it.

If you’ve saved the file

  1. Open the file you were working on.

  2. Go to File > Info.

  3. Under Manage Workbook or Manage Presentation, select the file labeled (when I closed without saving).

  4. In the bar at the top of the file, select Restore to overwrite any previously saved versions.

    Office 2016 Restore Documents

    Tip: In Word, you can also compare versions by clicking Compare instead of Restore.

If you haven’t saved the file

  1. Go to File > Info > Manage Document > Recover Unsaved Workbooks in Excel, or Recover Unsaved Presentations in PowerPoint.

    Office 2016 Recover Unsaved Documents

  2. Select the file, and then select Open.

  3. In the bar at the top of the file, select Save As to save the file.

    Office 2016 Save Recovered File

See Also

View historical versions of Office files

What is AutoSave?

View the version history of an item or file in a SharePoint list or library

How does versioning work in a SharePoint list or library

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