Microsoft Publisher files are one of the most straightforward and widely used desktop publishing software for making print publications. MS Publisher is known for its lack of interoperability with other software, despite its features and benefits for the average user. Files created using Microsoft Publisher aren’t as frequent as you may imagine. Furthermore, because MS Publisher gets not included in Office for Mac, MS Publisher files became the only Office format that presents difficulties for mac users. So you might be thinking about how to open publisher file on Mac? Keep on reading to know all about publisher files.
What Is A .pub File?
If you’re not sure what a.pub or pub file is, don’t worry; we’ll go through it quickly. A pub file that contains the.pub extension (such as filename.pub) that Microsoft Publisher, a Windows program, generated. It’s part of the Microsoft software package.
Microsoft Publisher is a digital production program or tool that focuses on page layout and design. It stores the files in a.pub format by default, another native version. Different file types supported by Microsoft Publisher include PDF, HTML, and more.
How To Open Publisher File On Mac?
It might be challenging to access the .pub file on the Mac. However, there are some options. The file can be opened in various ways, as shown below. You can use any method for how to open publisher file on Mac
Copy It To A Windows PC
The most straightforward and most apparent solution is to download the file in its native environment, which in this case is Windows. You may save the file to a flash drive, a network share, or a cloud storage service such as Google Drive. Then you may try to access this from a Windows computer.
You could be in luck if you do have your personal Windows Computer. If you don’t even have one, borrow one from a friend or coworker and go to the libraries and borrow one for free. Make sure that now the Windows PC you’re using has Publisher installed or that you have access to Microsoft 365.
You’ll require Microsoft 365 Business Standard or above to utilize Microsoft 365. You may acquire a trial version of this if necessary. You might be asking if you can use this version from your Mac because it’s an online version, but I’m afraid it won’t work. It specifies that it is only compatible with PCs.
Different Format
Publisher files may get exported to various formats, including PDF, HTML, etc. It still necessitates reading the first file into Publisher. If it was supplied to you by a friend or coworker, ask them to convert it to a PDF format.
You might also ask someone who has Windows and Publisher to access and export this for you. If you don’t have a Windows PC having Publisher or membership to Microsoft 365, you’ll have to start looking for one. You may read the file on your Mac once converted to PDF format.
File Converter
You may have come across this when seeking a solution to the pub file issue. Moreover, you may convert the pub file to either a PDF or even other formats, which you can use online converters on your Mac.
These are convenient and simple to use. You can convert your file rapidly, but keep in mind that you’re giving it access to someone else (and their program). If the file contains secret or private information, this may be a poor idea. If that isn’t an issue for you, it may be a great solution. It gets recommended to read the user agreements or anything else they have, what they’ll do with the file, and if they store the data.
None of these internet converters will get included here, and they’re simple to come by if you perform a Google search. If you choose this way, be careful.
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LibreOffice
It is a wonderful option; however, installing LibreOffice might require some time and space if you don’t already have it. LibreOffice is a set of applications that works similarly to Microsoft Office. It’s an open free solution that you can install on your Mac and use.
You’ll be able to open.pub files using LibreOffice Draw after installing. This program is similar to Publisher in that it opens and imports files and allows you to modify them. The formatting will change significantly, so you may need to tidy it, but it will work.
If you make modifications, you won’t be able to save them in a.pub file format, and you must keep them in the .odf format, which Draw supports. If you’re only looking at them, you won’t have to worry about anything except the formatting not matching what you had in Publisher.
Windows VM
Installing a Windows VM (Virtual Machine) on your Mac can solve many problems when you need to view or read anything developed in Windows.
Using such a VM is similar to running a different computer on your Mac’s desktop in a window. Almost any operating system, including Windows, may be used. You may then install and launch Publisher once you have an edition on the desktop.
Virtual machines may get run in a variety of ways on a Mac. VMWare, Parallels, and Virtualbox Box are just a few examples of virtualization software.
Boot Camp
Another alternative for how to open publisher file on Mac is to use Boot Camp to download and configure Windows on the Mac machine. It allows you to boot into either Windows or the Mac OS. You may then start Publisher and view the files after booting through the Windows environment.
Like the last one, this alternative seems excessive for opening a few pub files. But if it’s something you do daily and don’t have a PC around, you should consider it.
Final Thought
If you’re a Mac user with a pub file that has to get opened, you have a few alternatives, as explained above. You’ll have to choose which one would be the finest for you, and it may vary depending on the nature of the file in question and how frequently you want to do so.
