# Replacing Office 64-bit with 32-bit **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 8, 2013, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacing-office-64-bit-with-32-bit/665654 "2013-08-08T01:20:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 2\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2013, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacing-office-64-bit-with-32-bit/665654/1 "2013-08-08T01:20:41Z")
Do I have to uninstall the 64-bit version first to be able to install the 32-bit version? I’m concerned about losing all my settings if I have to do that. I am wondering if it will just install on top of it, like when you do an upgrade. ---
**Author:** ![Dervorin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Dervorin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dervorin)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2013, 8:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/replacing-office-64-bit-with-32-bit/665654/2 "2013-08-08T08:10:56Z")
Yes, you do. From the horse’s mouth: > **[Microsoft Support](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us?correlationid=86bff196-26e9-46d6-9a1b-891f04ed1e71&ui=en-us&rs=en-us&ad=us)** > > Microsoft support is here to help you with Microsoft products. Find how-to articles, videos, and training for Microsoft 365, Windows, Surface, and more. Because you can’t do a side- by-side install, the 32-bit installer won’t even run unless you remove the 64-bit version first. I generally recommend that people install the 32-bit version unless they have a compelling reason to install the 64-bit version. A large number of plug-ins and other extensions for Office only work with the 32-bit version (Excel, in particular, is prone to these issues because it has a lot of plug-ins).