How to Disable the Mini-Toolbar and Live Preview in Microsoft Word

This tutorial will show you to turn off/disable the mini-toolbar and live preview features of Microsoft Word.

Two of the most visually noticeable features of Microsoft Word 2007, 2010 and 2016 are the “mini toolbar” and “live preview”. While the mini toolbar is helpful at times, it can also cause problems that can only be fixed by disabling it.

Similarly, the live preview enables users to change the basic settings and give an instant preview of how font changes (and more) will look. Some power users find it more annoying than helpful.

Here’s how you can turn off the mini toolbar and/or Live Preview in Word –

1. Open Microsoft Word and click the File tab of the ribbon to gain access to backstage view, then select Options.
2. Select General from the left pane in the Word Options window and uncheck Show Mini Toolbar on selection and Enable Live Preview. Click OK.
3. That’s it, you’re done. No need to restart MS Word 2010 after this because the changes will take effect immediately.

In order to turn off this feature in Microsoft Word 2007, the procedure is equally as simple.

1. Click on the Office button in the top left corner of Microsoft Word 2007, then click on the Word Options button.
2. Select the Popular category from the left pane in the Word Options window and un-check the Show Mini Toolbar on selection and Enable Live Preview options. Click OK.
3. That’s it, you’re done! Now when you highlight the text, it will not show the mini toolbar.

Now you know how to disable the mini-toolbar and Live Preview in Microsoft Word!