Troubleshoot the “account error” message in Microsoft Word, Excel, or other Office apps.
If you’re seeing an “Account Error” message when opening a Microsoft Office application (like Word, Excel, Outlook or PowerPoint), don’t worry, this is a common issue that can usually be fixed in just a few minutes.
Option 1: Watch the step-by-step video
Prefer following along with a video? Click play above and follow the instructions.
Option 2: Follow the text instructions
Step 1: Close all Office applications
Make sure Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, or any other Office programs are completely closed before starting.
Step 2: Open File Explorer
How to open File Explorer:
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Press Windows + E
OR
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Click the folder icon in the taskbar
OR
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Click the Start menu and type File Explorer
Step 3: Go to your user folder
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In File Explorer, click “This PC”
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Open the C: drive
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Open the Users folder
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Open the folder with your username
Can’t find your username folder?
Click in the address bar (at the top of File Explorer) and type: C:\Users\
Then press Enter. From there, you should see your folder.
Step 4: Show hidden folders (if needed)
If you don’t see the AppData folder:
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At the top of File Explorer, click the View tab
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Click Show, then choose Hidden items
Now you should see the AppData folder.
Step 5: Delete cached Office account folders
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Open the following folders in this order:
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AppData → Local → Microsoft
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In the Microsoft folder, find and right-click → Delete the folder called:
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IdentityCache
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In the same Microsoft folder, scroll down and open:
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OneAuth
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Inside OneAuth, delete both of these folders:
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Accounts
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Blobs
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If you can’t find these folders, that’s okay—they may not exist on all systems.
Step 6: Restart your computer
Once you’ve deleted the folders, restart your PC.
Step 7: Open Office and sign in
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Open Word or Excel again
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You should be prompted to sign in
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Enter your email and password
This time, the account error should be gone and your Office apps will work as expected.