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How to Fix Screen Artifacts and Overlapping Text in Office 2021
Question details
The user is experiencing visual glitches, including overlapping text and screen artifacts, in Office 2021 applications when moving the mouse.
- Product
- Microsoft Office 2021
- Device & OS
- Windows
- Scenario
- Navigating documents and menus in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint using a mouse.
- Observed behavior
- Icons and text overlap and distort upon mouse movement within Office applications, while the rest of the Windows operating system and capture tools display normally.
Ensure that your Windows operating system is fully updated and save any open documents to prevent data loss before troubleshooting or reinstalling Office.
Disable Hardware Graphics Acceleration and Test in Safe Mode
Running Office in Safe Mode can help determine if the visual glitches are caused by add-ins or the hardware graphics acceleration rendering engine.
Office applications use hardware acceleration to improve performance, but this can sometimes conflict with your graphics card drivers, resulting in overlapping text and artifacts.
Press the Windows key + R to open the Run dialog. Type 'winword /safe' (without quotes) and press Enter to launch Word in Safe Mode. Check if the screen artifacts still appear when you move your mouse.
If the issue does not occur in Safe Mode, open Word normally. Go to File > Options > Advanced.
Scroll down to the 'Display' section. Check the box for 'Disable hardware graphics acceleration' (if available in your version). Click OK and restart the Office application.
Perform an Online Repair or Complete Reinstall
If display issues persist across Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, repairing or completely removing and reinstalling Office can fix corrupted rendering files.
Experience Glitch-Free Document Editing with WPS Office
If persistent screen artifacts and rendering bugs in Microsoft Office 2021 disrupt your workflow, consider switching to WPS Office. It provides a highly compatible, lightweight, and stable environment for viewing and editing all your documents without the display issues.
- 1. Download and Install: Visit the official WPS website to download the free installer and follow the setup instructions.
- 2. Open Your Office Files: Launch WPS Office and click 'Open' to browse and select your existing Word, Excel, or PowerPoint files.
- 3. Edit Without Glitches: Enjoy a stable editing experience without overlapping text or screen artifacts.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why do screen artifacts only happen in Office 2021 and not other apps?
Office applications use a specific hardware graphics acceleration engine to render interface elements and text. If there is a compatibility issue between this engine and your system's graphics configuration, glitches will be isolated to Office programs while other Windows tools function normally.
Will updating my graphics drivers fix overlapping text in Office?
Updating graphics drivers is a common first step for display issues, but if you have already updated them and the text still overlaps when moving the mouse, the problem likely lies within corrupted Office installation files or its internal graphics acceleration settings.
What should I do if the Microsoft Uninstall tool doesn't resolve the issue?
If a complete removal and reinstallation using the Microsoft Uninstall tool fails to fix the artifacts, the issue might be a deep-rooted bug in your specific Windows build and Office combination. You may need to contact Microsoft Support for further investigation, or switch to a stable alternative like WPS Office.
