Open a Word file in Compose
Open Documents, choose Open or import, then select your DOCX. Compose brings in the parts it understands and tells you if anything needs a closer look.
For a straightforward document, you can usually carry on writing straight away. If the file has comments, tracked changes, citations or unusual layout, use the table below as a quick check.
What transfers between Word and Compose
You do not need to know how DOCX works. The useful question is what comes with the document and what stays behind.
| Feature | From Word | To Word | What to know |
|---|---|---|---|
| Text and everyday formatting | Yes | Yes | Headings, lists, bold and italic text, links, tables and images usually stay editable. |
| Page layout | Usually | Usually | Page breaks, sections, columns and page numbers usually come across. Very complex layouts are worth checking. |
| Comments | Yes | Yes, if you include Review | Word comments become Review comments. When you export with Review included, open Compose comments become Word comments. |
| Tracked changes and Suggested edits | Text changes | Yes, if you include Review | Added and deleted text in Word becomes Suggested edits. Compose can send open Suggested edits back as Track Changes. |
| Citations and sources | Most built-in Word citations | Yes | Citations Compose recognises stay linked to their sources. Compose can also send its sources and citations to Word. |
| Footnotes, endnotes and bibliography | Yes | Yes | Footnotes and endnotes remain notes. A bibliography can stay linked to its sources when Compose can recognise the connection. |
| Charts | As a picture, not an editable chart | As a picture | Chart data does not move between the two apps. Keep the original file if you may need to edit the chart later. |
| Shelf and Version History | No | No | These stay in Compose and are not added to a Word file. |
| Zotero, EndNote or Mendeley libraries | No | No | The Word file does not contain your full Zotero, EndNote or Mendeley library. Compose keeps readable references where it can. |
Comments and tracked changes
If someone sends you a Word file with comments, those comments appear in Review. Added or deleted text from Track Changes becomes Suggested edits. Reviewer names and dates come across when Word includes them.
Some Word changes do not have a direct match in Compose. A formatting-only change or moved text may not become a Suggested edit. Compose will tell you when something needs checking instead of guessing.
Send comments and edits back to Word
Word export is available on Pro and Teams. By default, Compose creates a Clean document without open Review comments or pending Suggested edits.
If you are sending the file back to an editor, choose Include comments and suggested edits. Your open comments appear as Word comments, and Suggested edits appear as Track Changes.
Resolved Review items stay in Compose. If Compose cannot safely put an old comment or edit back in the right place, it leaves it out and tells you.
Citations, footnotes and references
If a citation uses Word's own source list and Compose recognises it, the citation can stay linked to its source. Compose can do the same when you send citations back to Word.
Footnotes and endnotes also move between the two apps as notes. Compose can also create a Word bibliography that Word can update from those sources.
Your Zotero, EndNote or Mendeley library is separate from the Word file, so Compose cannot bring that whole library across. If the DOCX only contains a written reference list, Compose keeps the readable text.
What does not transfer
A Word file is useful for sharing and collaboration, but it does not contain everything in your Compose document. Shelf notes, Version History and resolved Review history stay in Compose.
Some Word-only changes do not have an exact Compose equivalent. Formatting changes and moved text are examples. Comment reply threads may be simplified rather than recreated as a full conversation.
Chart data does not move between the apps. When Compose sends a chart to Word, Word receives a clear picture of it. Keep the .compose file if you may want to change the chart later.
Before you send a Word file
Most ordinary documents need only a quick look. Check more carefully if the document has complex tables, large images, citations, comments, tracked changes, charts, columns or unusual page breaks.
For an important handoff, open the exported DOCX in Word before you send it. A quick check there will catch small layout differences.
Your document stays on your device
Compose opens and creates DOCX files on your device. It does not send the document to a separate conversion service.
Use DOCX when you need to work with someone in Word. Keep the .compose file as your main working copy and back it up like any important document.