Microsoft Edge recently added a feature called Office Sidebar that displays the web versions of its Office productivity suite. This is a great feature that provides easy access to the web versions of Microsoft Office tools. It includes shortcuts to Microsoft 365 applications such as Office, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneDrive, OneNote, Outlook, To Do, Calendar, and Skype. The tool is normally hidden by default, but you can enable it in a few simple steps. If you would like to try this new functionality, here is a guide to help you enable the new Office Sidebar feature in the Microsoft Edge browser.
How to Enable and Use Office Sidebar in Microsoft Edge
Below are the steps you need to take so that you can enable the Office sidebar in the Microsoft Edge browser:
- Open the Microsoft Edge browser.
- Go to the top-right corner of the screen and click on the gear icon (Page settings).
- Click on the Custom mode.
- Turn on the Office sidebar toggle switch.
If you want to see a detailed explanation of these steps, see below:
To get it started, launch the Microsoft Edge browser first.
Now click on the Page Settings option that you will see in a gear icon. If you go to the top-right corner of the page, you will find the Page Settings option in the form of a gear icon. Click on the icon to open the Page Layout Settings window.
When you are in the Page Layout settings, click on “Custom” to see the available options.
Here you’ll find a new Office sidebar toggle switch. Enable it to add the office sidebar to the left side of your screen.
After performing the above steps, you will now be able to access Microsoft Office online from the left portion of Edge. As you can see, the sidebar looks like this when it’s enabled. You can use the buttons to visit the sites you’re interested in.
Furthermore, if you want to expand the Edge sidebar, simply go to the top-left area of your screen and click on the launcher icon. The sidebar is shown below in its expanded form.
In the expanded view, you’ll see the caption of the respective web icon that describes the website shortcuts so users can easily find them. When you click the launcher icon again, the sidebar will be minimized back to its previous state.
How to Disable the Office Sidebar in Microsoft Edge
In case you don’t like the new sidebar in the Edge browser, you can disable it in the browser settings. Here are the steps you can use to do so:
- Click on the gear icon (Page settings) in the top-right corner of the screen.
- From the available options, click on the Custom mode.
- Simply toggle off the Office sidebar and you’re done. You now have your previous Edge tab page without the sidebar.
The sidebar can also be hidden through the App launcher. To hide the sidebar of the screen, click on the vertical three-dot menu in the bottom left corner of the screen and then select Hide Sidebar.
Read: Microsoft Edge Sidebar keeps opening
Why should I enable Office sidebars in Edge?
This feature has been rolled out to make Microsoft Office web versions more compatible with Microsoft Edge. When you enable the Office sidebar in your Edge browser, you can easily access Microsoft’s Office suite online. During the course of your work, if you use Microsoft Office tools frequently, you might want to enable the sidebar in order to have quick access to them.
Related: How to add or remove Sidebar Search Panel in Microsoft Edge
What does office productivity mean?
Programs that are used in the office to create, edit, and manage documents are known as office productivity programs. These programs serve a broad range of purposes throughout the workplace.
Read: Difference between Microsoft Edge Bar, Edge Sidebar and Edge Office Bar explained.
