How To Fix ‘Word Not A Default Program For Viewing Documents’

There have been reports of Windows users getting a prompt message that displays “Word isn’t your default program for Viewing and Editing documents” each time a .docx file is being opened. It is not actually an error or a warning as most users claimed, its just a notification from Word that requires a change and modification in the settings. Although the notification is not exclusive to a Windows version because there have been the same reports with Windows 7, 8 and Windows 10 too that Word not a Default program.

Reasons why the prompt message appears

There are several possible reasons that may have triggered the notification to appear every time the windows user tries to open a document file on Word. The pretty obvious one is that perhaps it is allowed to appear from the Settings of word. Most of the time, the notification will appear if it is permitted to do so. Aside from windows settings, there are also instances wherein another application is set as default to open .docx file document. Hence, there is a way to make Word as a default program which will be discussed below.

Another possible reason is that perhaps Windows 10 is experiencing a glitch in which at times the operating system is confused of certain configuration settings.

In here, we will show you a step by step guide on how to fix ‘Word isn’t your default program from viewing and editing documents’ prompt notification.

Fix Prompt Notification for Word not a Default program

Time needed: 5 minutes.

Here are few steps to set up Word as a Default application when opening .docx files:

  1. Press Windows key + R

    This open the Run Dialog Box.
    Press Windows key + R

  2. Type “ms-settings:defaultapps” and Press Enter

    This will open the Default apps tab of the Settings section.
    Fix Word not a default program

  3. Click on Choose Default apps by file type

    Scroll down below and select Choose default apps by file type. File type windows will load up. It usually takes a few minutes to load.
    Word isn’t Your Default Program

  4. Locate and Select .docx format

    From the list of Associate File types with specific apps located at the left side panel of the screen, search for .docx format type. The list is arranged alphabetically making it easy to search.
    Word isn’t Your Default Program

  5. Click on the + icon

    Once .docx format is located, click on the + icon. A list of compatible application appears.
    Word isn’t Your Default Program for Viewing and Editing Documents

  6. Select Word as Default Application

    If Word is already the default application, you need to select and click on it again. This is done to refresh the option chosen as default.

    Word isn’t Your Default Program

  7. Restart Computer

    To apply the changes made, you need to restart your computer.
    Restart Computer

In addition, if you want to stop the prompt notification to appear, you need to disable it from Settings of your Word Application. However, this will not resolved Word not a default issue. Refer to the steps mentioned above for that. In order to disable the prompt notification to keep on appearing, follow the steps below:

  1. Open Microsoft Word Application
  2. At the left side panel, scroll down to the bottom and click on Options.
  3. At the General tab section, scroll down at the right side panel and look for the Start up options tab.
  4. Now, deselect or uncheck the box “Tell me if Microsoft Word isn’t the default program for viewing and editing documents” tab.
  5. Click OK to close Word Settings.

After following the steps mentioned above, you have successfully made Word as a default program to view and edit .docx file documents.

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