New features in Microsoft Office 2021

Microsoft Office 2021 will have a new design with a refreshed ribbon interface, rounded window corners, and a neutral color palette. In Microsoft Office 2021, you will find new data types, functions, translation, new inking tools and editing tools, motion graphics, ease-of-use features, and so much more.

1]  Support for OpenDocument  format (ODF) 1.3

Office apps will now save the ODF 1.3 format only, ODF 1.2 format, and earlier files can be open but saved as 1.3. The ODF 1.3 format is supported in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

2] Updated draw tab

Microsoft has improved the ink experience in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint; it allows you to quickly access and changes all your inking tools in one place.

3] Performance improvements

Microsoft Office 2021 provides improved performance, stability, and speed across Word, Excel,  PowerPoint, and Outlook.

4] Save your changes as they happen

You can upload your files to OneDrive, OneDrive for Business, or SharePoint Online to ensure all your updates are saved automatically. This feature is available in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

5] The XLOOKUP function

Help find things in a table or row. It is available in Microsoft Excel.

6] The Let Function

The Let function assigns names to calculation results. This feature is available in Excel.

7] XMatch function

The XMatch function searches for a specific item in an array or range of cells and returns the item’s relative position. This feature is available in Excel.

8] Dynamic Arrays

Write one formula and return an array of values. It is available in Excel.

9] Replay your Ink Strokes

You can now play ink strokes as they are drawn. This feature is available in PowerPoint.

10] New and Improve record slider

This new and improved record slider supports presenter video recording, ink recording, and laser pointer recording. This feature is available in PowerPoint.

11] Arrange elements on your slide for screen readers

This feature allows you to see the elements in screen-reading and rearrange them to communicate your message efficiently. This feature is available in PowerPoint.

12] Translator and Ink in Outlook

On the fly and view transcript, you can translate email messages into 70 languages. This feature will be available in Microsoft Outlook. Annotate email images or draw in a separate canvas using a finger, pen, or mouse.

The Linked Table Manager is a central location for viewing and managing all data sources and linked tables in an Access database. You can refresh, relink and remove linked tables; this feature is offered in Microsoft Access.

14] Keep tabs on your database objects in Access

You can quickly drag tabs to rearrange them and close database objects with one click. This feature is offered in Microsoft Access.

15] New Date/Time data type in Microsoft Access

Microsoft is implementing the DateTime2 data type into Access.

16] The Sketched Style Outline

Using the Sketched Style Outline feature, you can give a casual hand dawn look to shapes in your presentation. You can try out the curved freehand and scribble options. This feature will be available in Word, PowerPoint, and Excel.

17] Pick the perfect color

You will be able to pick the perfect color that fits your taste. Microsoft has now added a new input field in the Colors dialog box for Hex color values. This change will be a huge relief for users because they won’t have to spend their time converting Hex color values into RGB values. The feature is available in Access, Word, PowerPoint, Excel, OneNote, Visio, and Publisher.

18] Co-author documents

In Microsoft Office 2021, you will be able to work with others simultaneously; everyone will be notified when a file is updated, so there is no need to send extra notes or emails. This feature will be available in Word, PowerPoint, and Excel but not Office LTSC 2021. LTSC means Long-Term Support, unlike Office 2021, Office LTSC 2021 is not sold retail but is available only through volume licensing.

19] Knows who is in your document

In the new Office 2021 suite, you will see who is working with you and where they are in the document. This feature will be available in office 2021  Word, PowerPoint, and Excel but not Office LTSC 2021.

20] Better collaboration between with modern comments

You will have better control when you send comments to your co-authors and have consistent commenting experience between Word, Excel, and PowerPoint but not Office LTSC 2021.

21] Sheet Views

Create customized views in an Excel worksheet without disrupting others. This feature will be available in Excel but not Office LTSC 2021.

22] Accessibility Ribbon

The Accessibility ribbon puts all the tools you need to create accessible content in one place. It will be available in Excel but not Office LTSC 2021.

This feature allows you to ask colleagues to contribute to your deck and point them to the slide you need help with; this feature is available in Office 2021 (PowerPoint) but not Office LTSC 2021.

24] Improve Comprehension with Line Focus

This feature enables the user to move through a Word document line by line and adjust the focus to put one, three, or five lines in view at a time.

These Office 2021 and Office 365 Guides are sure to help you get started.

What is the price of Microsoft Office 2021?

Microsoft office 2021 is offered in two versions Office Home and Student 2021 and Office Home and Business 2021. Office Home and Student 2021 price is $150 and includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, and Microsoft Teams, and  Home and Business 2021 price is $250  and comes with everything in Office Home and Student 2021, plus Outlook and the rights to use the apps for business purposes. Microsoft Office 2021 is an upgrade to the Microsoft Office suite. Microsoft Office 2021 is supported on Windows 11, Windows 10 and Mac.