WordCraft Getting Started: Open, Edit, and Save a DOCX

WordCraft is an open-source document editor from the ArtCraft team and contributors. It works with Word documents and offers browser, desktop, and command-line workflows. Start with a copy of a short document, make one change, and reopen the saved file before moving a larger project. That gives you a useful compatibility check with your own content.

This independent guide reviews upstream documentation on October 12, 2026. The first release, v0.1.0, appeared on October 7. The reviewed release is v0.5.0; the project remains alpha. The steps below are a suggested evaluation workflow, not a claim that we tested every format or platform.

Choose the browser or desktop edition

Use WordCraft Online to try document editing without installing a desktop application. Our site hosts an upstream browser build and provides independent guides; it is not the official ArtCraft website. A browser session is not a cloud document account. Download the work you want to keep.

Choose the desktop edition when you want a local application or plan to connect an AI agent through the CLI and MCP server. Our download guide leads to official release assets. Match both your operating system and processor architecture. An ARM build and an x64 build are not interchangeable merely because both say Windows or Linux.

A ten-minute first document

Prepare a two-page copy containing a title, two headings, a short list, and a small table. If your real work uses pictures or non-English text, include one representative example. Keep the original file unchanged so you can compare results.

1. Open the copy in the editor. Check the title, page breaks, and whether all characters are visible.
2. Edit one sentence and apply a heading style to a section. This checks text editing and structure together.
3. Add a row to the small table. Watch whether adjacent paragraphs move in a way you expect.
4. Save or download a new DOCX with a distinct filename, such as sample-wordcraft.docx.
5. Open that saved copy in the application your recipient will use. Compare its layout and content with your original.
6. If you need PDF delivery, export a PDF too, then inspect the exported file rather than relying on the editing canvas.

This exercise is deliberately small. A successful plain paragraph says little about a report containing several section breaks, footnotes, and floating images. Add those features to a second sample if they matter to your work.

What should you check after saving?

| Check | What to look for | | --------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Text | Missing characters, accidental extra spaces, and changed line breaks | | Structure | Heading levels, list numbering, and table row order | | Layout | Page count, margins, image position, and header or footer placement | | Review | Comments and tracked changes that you still need to act on | | Delivery | Whether the saved file opens correctly for the intended recipient |

If the result differs, record the version, operating system or browser, and the smallest sample that reproduces it. A specific report such as “the second table row moves onto page three after saving” is more useful than “DOCX is broken.” Remove private information before sharing a sample with the upstream project.

Is WordCraft ready to replace Microsoft Word?

That depends on your documents. Upstream describes the application as alpha and publishes remaining work in its roadmap. Do not treat a feature appearing in a ribbon as proof that every associated Word document will round-trip perfectly.

Our WordCraft versus Microsoft Word guide provides a decision checklist. If your goal is agent-assisted editing, read the MCP setup guide; the browser editor alone does not install that integration.

Source and scope

The product identity and available editions come from the official WordCraft repository. Release status comes from the linked release notes and roadmap. The sample document, comparison checklist, and evaluation sequence above are our editorial recommendations. They are not an upstream compatibility guarantee.