How to Stop Word from Creating Backup Files
Word creates .wbk backup files when Always create backup copy is enabled. To stop creating them, clear that option under File → Options → Advanced → Save.
This guide covers the desktop version of Word for Windows. Menu names and positions can differ between versions.
Turn off automatic backup copies
- Open File → Options. In Word for Windows, you can also press Alt, F, T in sequence.
- Choose Advanced and scroll down to the Save section.
- Clear Always create backup copy, then choose OK.
Save a document and check whether a new backup is created or an existing backup is updated. This is a Word option and can affect other documents too. To enable it again, select the same checkbox.
Understand what happens to existing files
Turning the option off stops future automatic backup creation; it does not automatically delete existing .wbk files. Before cleaning up a backup, check that the original opens correctly and that the backup is not needed for recovery.
AutoRecover and cloud-document AutoSave are separate features. Turning off .wbk copies does not turn both of them off. See AutoSave, AutoRecover, and backup settings in Word for the distinction. The Windows desktop settings are described in Microsoft's advanced Word options guidance.
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