PUB file viewer: open a .pub file in your browser
This pub file viewer opens Microsoft Publisher files in your browser, free, with nothing to install. Your file stays on your device: it is read here and never uploaded. You can then save it as a Word document, a PDF or pictures.
Open your .pub files
or drag them here. You can choose several at once.
Your files never leave this device. They’re read here, in your browser, and nothing is uploaded. How you can check
How your file stays private, and how you can check
The reader runs inside this page. Your file is opened by your own browser and the pages are drawn on your screen; the Word file, PDF or pictures are made on your device too. Nothing about the file, not even its name, is sent anywhere. The page shows no ads and has no advertising trackers.
You don’t have to take our word for it:
- Work offline. Once this page has finished loading, turn off Wi-Fi or unplug the network cable, then open your file. It still works, because nothing needs the internet.
- Watch the network. On a computer, open your browser’s developer tools (F12), choose the Network tab, and open a file: no request carries it.
What it can open
The reader is libmspub, the same open-source code that LibreOffice and Scribus use to import Publisher files, according to The Document Foundation. The Document Liberation Project, which maintains it, says it supports files from Publisher 2000 and later, and that very old files from Publisher 95–98 are only partly supported. A file it can’t open shows a message instead of a broken page.
We have fixed two problems in it ourselves. Russian and other non-Latin text in old Publisher 97–98 files no longer comes out garbled, and files whose document details (such as author or title) can’t be read now open instead of failing. Both fixes are published with the reader’s source notes.
It works the same on a Windows PC, a Mac, a Chromebook, an iPad or a phone: anywhere a current browser runs, with nothing to install. Fonts the file uses but your device doesn’t have are replaced with similar ones.
Where the reader comes from
libmspub and the libraries it needs are open source; their licences and where to get their source are listed in the reader’s notice file, with our small changes to them in the reader’s source notes; the website’s own libraries are in its notice file. PubFold is not affiliated with Microsoft, The Document Foundation or the Document Liberation Project.
Common questions
- Can I open a .PUB file without Publisher?
- Yes. Choose the file above and its pages appear in your browser. You can also use LibreOffice Draw on a computer; our guide on opening .pub files without Publisher covers both.
- How can I convert a Publisher file to Word for free?
- Open it above and choose “Download as Word (.docx)”. The text comes across as editable text with its fonts and sizes, pictures come across as pictures, and pages with drawings Word can’t edit are added as a picture too.
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