MC1249435 Stay informedFeature updateUser impact

Find your files quickly and easily on Word, Excel and PowerPoint App home pages

From Microsoft 365 Message Center Archive by Merill Fernando · Microsoft may not have sent this notice to your tenant.

Rollout dates are often only in the text. When Microsoft moves them, the change shows under "What changed".

What the notice says

Microsoft’s text, safely structured

Introduction

We are improving how users find their files on the Word, Excel, and PowerPoint app home pages by adding a Search box in the page header. This change helps users locate files more quickly with file suggestions shown as users click or type in the box.

When this will happen

General Availability (Worldwide, GCC): Rollout began in late December 2025 and is expected to complete by March 2026.

How this affects your organization

Who is affected

Users of the Word (word.cloud.microsoft.com), Excel (excel.cloud.microsoft.com) and PowerPoint (powerpoint.cloud.microsoft.com) app home pages.

What will happen

Users will see a Search box in the page header on Word, Excel, and PowerPoint app home pages.
Clicking into the search box will show file suggestions in a drop down list.
File suggestions will update dynamically as users type in the box.
The feature is enabled by default.
Existing Microsoft 365 permissions and access controls are respected.
No admin policy changes are required.

What you can do to prepare

No action is required.
Optionally notify users and update internal documentation.

Compliance considerations

Compliance question	Explanation
Does the change alter how existing customer data is processed, stored, or accessed (for example, documents, files, or metadata)?	This feature enhances how existing Microsoft 365 files are searched and surfaced on the Word, Excel, and PowerPoint app home pages. File suggestions use existing file metadata and relevance signals and fully respect current user permissions. No new data types are introduced and no changes are made to data storage, retention, or access controls.

What changed

Between archive captures, newest first

The archive supplies one version of this notice.

No related evidence found in this installation's recent collection. This does not establish that no announcement exists.

Not confirmed here

What this page cannot tell you

Whether your tenant is affected: this is Microsoft's notice, not a check of your settings.