News > Software & Apps Microsoft Office Visual Update Available to Everyone To match the overall design of Windows 11 By Allison Murray Allison Murray Twitter Tech News Reporter Southern Illinois University Allison reports on all things tech. She's a news junky that keeps her eye on the latest trends. Allison is a writer working out of Chicago, IL, with her only coworker: her cat Norbert. lifewire's editorial guidelines Published on December 2, 2021 02:29PM EST Fact checked by Jerri Ledford Fact checked by Jerri Ledford Western Kentucky University Gulf Coast Community College Jerri L. Ledford has been writing, editing, and fact-checking tech stories since 1994. Her work has appeared in Computerworld, PC Magazine, Information Today, and many others. lifewire's fact checking process Tweet Share Email Tweet Share Email Software & Apps Mobile Phones Internet & Security Computers & Tablets Smart Life Home Theater & Entertainment Software & Apps Social Media Streaming Gaming Microsoft Office’s new look is now available for everyone with the Windows 11 version of Office 365 and Office 2021. The new visual update for Office is available for all users this week, Microsoft announced on Thursday. Initially announced in June with select user testing over the summer, the new design mimics that of the overall user experience of Windows 11. Microsoft "This Office visual refresh is based on feedback from customers who asked for a more natural and consistent experience within and between your applications, specifically on Windows," Microsoft wrote in its blog announcing the visual refresh. "With this update, we deliver an intuitive, coherent, and familiar user interface, using the Fluent Design principles, across all your applications." Most notably, you'll see changes like matching the Office theme to your Windows theme. Microsoft also said you could experience the visual refresh in your preferred Office theme, including black, white, colorful, or dark grey. In addition, the Quick Access Toolbar in Office is now hidden to make your interface simpler. You can, however, display it again by right-clicking the ribbon or clicking the Ribbon Display Options icon. You can toggle these new visual changes on or off by clicking the Coming Soon icon in the top right-hand corner, just in case you're not ready to make the full display change yet. Previously, the visual update was only available to a small number of beta users and Office Insiders. Microsoft also noted that there are some known issues to look out for in the visual update. These include problems like the Disable dark mode checkbox not working when 'Use system setting' is selected, a lack of the Mica background effect in apps, and no update to the backstage or File menu. However, the company said it is listening to user feedback about the visual release and fixing these known problems. Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day Email Address Sign up There was an error. Please try again. You're in! Thanks for signing up. There was an error. Please try again. Thank you for signing up! Tell us why! Other Not enough details Hard to understand Submit