When you’re working on important documents using Microsoft Office for Mac 2016, formatting problems can be incredibly frustrating. Missing fonts, layout misalignments, or unexpected style changes can derail your productivity, compromise professionalism, or even result in legal or business errors.

This comprehensive blog post walks you through the most common font and formatting issues in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook within Office 2016 for Mac—along with step-by-step solutions, best practices, and expert tips to prevent these problems from happening again.

Why Font and Formatting Issues Occur in Office 2016

While Microsoft Office for Mac 2016 is a stable productivity suite, font and formatting errors can still occur due to:

  • Missing fonts on the Mac system

  • Documents transferred from Windows or other platforms

  • Corrupted Office preferences or templates

  • Compatibility issues with macOS updates

  • Third-party font conflicts

  • Embedded font issues or file corruption

Understanding the root cause is the first step in fixing the problem effectively.

Common Symptoms of Font & Formatting Errors

Here are the signs that indicate your Office documents are facing font-related or formatting issues:

  • Fonts automatically substituted (e.g., Times New Roman replaces Calibri)

  • Bold or italic styling missing or inconsistent

  • Text spacing or alignment issues

  • Garbled or unreadable text

  • Unexpected layout changes in Word or PowerPoint

  • Excel gridlines or cell formats not appearing correctly

  • Print preview doesn’t match on-screen layout

Fix 1: Reinstall or Restore Missing Fonts

Step 1: Verify Font Availability

  1. Open Font Book on macOS.

  2. Search for the font causing the issue (e.g., Calibri, Arial, Cambria).

  3. If the font is missing or greyed out, it’s not currently available.

Step 2: Restore Standard Mac Fonts

You can restore default macOS fonts by:

  • Opening Font Book > File > Restore Standard Fonts

  • Reboot your Mac after restoration

Step 3: Manually Install Microsoft Fonts

Some fonts used in Office documents (Calibri, Cambria, etc.) are Microsoft-specific.

To install them:

  1. Download Microsoft fonts package (usually included with Office).

  2. Manually drag them into /Library/Fonts/.

  3. Restart Office apps to load new fonts.

Fix 2: Enable Font Substitution Notification in Word

Microsoft Word can silently replace missing fonts unless you enable alerts.

To enable alerts:

  1. Open Word.

  2. Go to Word > Preferences > Compatibility.

  3. Check “Font Substitution” box.

  4. Word will now notify you when a document is using substitute fonts.

Use this feature to identify issues before sharing or printing documents.

Fix 3: Rebuild Font Cache on macOS

Corrupted font caches can cause text rendering issues.

To rebuild cache:

  1. Open Terminal.

  2. Enter the following commands:

bash

CopyEdit

sudo atsutil databases -remove

sudo atsutil server -shutdown

sudo atsutil server -ping

 

  1. Reboot your Mac.

This forces macOS to clear and rebuild the font cache.

Fix 4: Update Office 2016 and macOS

Outdated software often leads to compatibility bugs.

To update Office:

  1. Open any Office app.

  2. Go to Help > Check for Updates.

  3. Use Microsoft AutoUpdate to apply all patches.

To update macOS:

  1. Go to System Preferences > Software Update

  2. Install the latest supported version compatible with Office 2016.

Note: Office 2016 support ends in October 2025. Avoid upgrading to macOS versions that may break compatibility after that.

Fix 5: Copy-Paste Without Formatting

When copying text between Office apps or from the web, formatting conflicts can arise.

Best practice:

  • Use Paste and Match Formatting:

    • Press Command + Shift + V

    • Or go to Edit > Paste Special > Unformatted Text

This strips the text of problematic formatting, reducing font mismatches.

Fix 6: Replace Fonts Within Office Documents

If a font is not installed and you want to standardize the document:

In Word:

  1. Press Command + H to open Find and Replace.

  2. Click Advanced Find & Replace > Format > Font.

  3. Find missing font (e.g., Cambria) and replace with a supported one (e.g., Times New Roman).

In PowerPoint:

  1. Go to Format > Replace Fonts.

  2. Select the font to replace and the new font.

  3. Apply to entire presentation.

Fix 7: Check Embedded Fonts (Windows to Mac Transfer)

If you’re opening a document created in Office for Windows:

  • Office 2016 for Mac does not support embedded fonts

  • This leads to automatic font substitution if the font doesn’t exist on your Mac

Solution:

  • Ask the sender to use common cross-platform fonts (Arial, Verdana, Times New Roman)

  • Or convert the file to PDF before sharing

Fix 8: Reset Normal.dotm Template in Word

A corrupted default template may cause recurring formatting errors.

To reset:

  1. Close Word.

Navigate to:

 bash
CopyEdit
~/Library/Application Support/Microsoft/Office/User Templates/

  2. Rename Normal.dotm to Normal_backup.dotm

  3. Restart Word – a new clean template will be generated.

Fix 9: Use Safe Fonts for Document Portability

To avoid missing font errors when sharing documents:

Recommended fonts:

  • Arial

  • Verdana

  • Times New Roman

  • Georgia

  • Trebuchet MS

Avoid decorative or non-standard fonts unless you know the recipient has them installed.

Fix 10: Reinstall Microsoft Office for Mac 2016

If all else fails, your Office installation may be corrupted.

To reinstall:

  1. Delete Office apps from /Applications.

  2. Remove support files from:

    • ~/Library/Containers/

    • ~/Library/Application Support/Microsoft/

  3. Download the official installer for Microsoft Office for Mac 2016

  4. Reinstall and restart your Mac.

Preventing Future Font and Formatting Problems

  • Stick to standard fonts

  • Use style sheets and templates to maintain uniformity

  • Avoid unnecessary font downloads from third-party sites

  • Keep macOS and Office updated

  • Always check formatting before printing or sharing

FAQ

Q1. Why does my document look different on another Mac?

That Mac may not have the same fonts installed. Office 2016 doesn’t embed fonts, so layout can shift.

Q2. Can I embed fonts in Word 2016 for Mac?

No, Office 2016 for Mac does not support font embedding. Convert documents to PDF for portability.

Q3. How can I avoid formatting changes when sharing documents?

Use standard fonts and convert to PDF before sending. Or request recipients to install necessary fonts.

Q4. Are Microsoft fonts like Calibri and Cambria available on Mac?

Not by default. They are included with Office, but may need to be reinstalled manually.

Q5. My Office 2016 keeps reverting fonts to Times New Roman. Why?

This usually means your preferred font is missing or the document template is corrupted.