Missing Microsoft Publisher? LibreOffice is here to save the day

• Microsoft has officially retired Publisher and ended support
• .pub is a proprietary file format, but the app used to access it has gone
• LibreOffice reverse-engineered the format so that you can use the Draw app

Microsoft has quietly ended more than three decades of Publisher after pulling support for Microsoft 365 subscribers earlier in October 2026 – even perpetual license under Publisher 2021 lost support following the company's decision.

While .pub files aren't set to be deleted, Microsoft fans will no longer be able to view and edit them, and are instead being told to move over to Word, PowerPoint or another suitable app.

But LibreOffice just declared its support, throwing Publisher users a lifeline – and it was a lot harder than you might've thought.

LibreOffice had to reverse-engineer Publisher

"From today, these documents are in a proprietary format, the only fully compatible application for which has been abandoned...

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