I saved changes over my original Word document and now the old content is gone. Is there any way to get the earlier version?
I saved over a file by mistake. Can I get the old version back?
Resolved
Data Recovery
GE
Gavin Evans November 3, 2026
2 replies
1,145 views
Reviewed by moderators
2 participants
Check version history, which is often available even if you never set it up.
1. OneDrive or SharePoint: right click the file, choose Version history, and restore an earlier version. Word also has File > Info > Version History for files stored there.
2. Windows: right click the file (or the folder it lives in), choose Properties > Previous Versions. If File History or System Protection is on, you see older copies.
3. Word AutoRecover and temp files sometimes hold an older state, so search for files starting with ~ or ending in .asd.
4. Backups: check Time Machine on a Mac, or your backup program.
If none of that exists, an overwritten file is very hard to recover, because the old data was replaced in the same place. Turn on File History for your documents folder to be safe next time.
OneDrive version history had last night's copy. Restored. Thanks.