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Office on Mac continously require sign in

Tommie Bowman 85 Reputation points
2025-12-11T13:19:34.34+00:00

I’m running into a recurring issue with Office apps on my Mac (Word, Excel, and PowerPoint) where they randomly sign me out of my Microsoft 365 account, even though my subscription is active. When this happens, the apps switch to read-only mode until I manually sign in again. Im using work account for these Apps

Microsoft 365 and Office | Development | Microsoft 365 App Publishing
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  1. Flora-T 7,855 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2025-12-11T14:22:36.3633333+00:00

    Hi Tommie Bowman

    Thank you for reaching out to Microsoft Q&A Forum and sharing your experience.

    I’m sorry to hear that your Office apps on macOS keep signing you out. I know how disruptive it can be when Word, Excel, or PowerPoint suddenly switch to read‑only mode. Please try the following steps:

    First, make sure macOS and Office for Mac are fully updated.

    If the issue continues after basic troubleshooting, you can follow Microsoft’s official guidance for removing old or corrupted Office license files on macOS: How to remove Office license files on a Mac - Microsoft Support

    Quit all Office apps. Open Finder and go to: ~/Library/Group Containers/UBF8T346G9.Office/

    Delete the Identity folder.

    Open Keychain Access and search for the following terms and delete all related entries:

    • Microsoft Office
    • ADAL
    • MSOID

    Restart your Mac. Open any Office app and sign in again with your work account.

    I hope this clarification helps, and that one of these steps stabilizes the sign‑in state on your Mac. When you have a moment, please let us know how things go on your side as your update can also assist others in the community who may be facing the same issue.

    If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it. If you have extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment". 

    Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.

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  1. Q&A Assist
    2025-12-11T13:19:47.3433333+00:00
    AI generated content. This question contains an answer created with AI from Q&A Assist. Learn more

    If Office apps on your Mac are continuously signing you out of your Microsoft 365 account, it may be related to the authentication process or issues with stored credentials. Here are some steps you can take to troubleshoot this issue:

    1. Check Keychain Access: Sometimes, the Keychain Access app may have stored credentials that are causing conflicts. Open Keychain Access, search for any entries related to "Office," and delete them. This may help reset the authentication process.
    2. Sign Out and Restart: Make sure to sign out of all Microsoft 365 apps completely. After signing out, restart your Mac and then try signing in again.
    3. Terminal Command: You can also try resetting the OneAuth credentials by opening Terminal and running the following command: 
         defaults write com.microsoft.Word ResetOneAuthCreds -bool YES
      After running the command, open Microsoft Word and attempt to sign in again.
    4. Check for Multiple Accounts: If you are signed in with multiple accounts from the same organization, this can cause issues. Ensure that you are using the correct account for your subscription.

    If the problem persists after trying these steps, you may need to look into further troubleshooting options or contact your IT department for assistance.

    References:

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