How to display the copilot bar on top of your word document?

The Copilot bar at the top of a Word document (and features like automatic document summaries) are controlled by the product version, license, and feature rollout, not by a manual toggle in File → Options → Copilot.

To have the Copilot bar appear:

1. Confirm the correct license is assigned and in use
   • The signed-in account in Word must have a Copilot-eligible license.
   • For home use, this means Microsoft 365 Personal or Family, or Copilot Pro.
   • For business use, this means Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Business Standard, Business Premium, E3, E5, F1, or F3 and Microsoft 365 Copilot.
   • In Word, check the account at the top of the window and ensure that account has the Copilot license.
2. Make sure Word is up to date and on a supported channel
   • On Windows desktop, install the latest Office updates (see “Install Office updates” in the referenced article).
   • For business users on Windows, Copilot features are not available on the Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel. The device must be on Current Channel or Monthly Enterprise Channel. To check:
     1. Open Word.
     2. Go to File → Account.
     3. In Product Information, verify that the update channel is not “Semi-Annual Enterprise Channel.” If it is, contact the organization’s IT/admin to move the device to Current Channel or Monthly Enterprise Channel.
3. Ensure privacy settings allow Copilot
   • In Word on Windows:
     1. Go to File → Account.
     2. Under Account Privacy, select Manage Settings.
     3. Turn on Experiences that analyze your content.
     4. Turn on All connected experiences.
   • On Mac:
     1. Open Word.
     2. Go to Word → Preferences → Privacy.
     3. Turn on Experiences that analyze your content and All connected experiences.
4. Refresh the Copilot/Office license
   • On Windows:
     1. In Word, go to File → Account.
     2. Select Update License.
     3. Close and restart all Office apps.
   • On Mac:
     1. In any Microsoft 365 app, select the app name menu (e.g., Word) → About Word → More Info… → Refresh License.
     2. Restart all Office apps.
5. Use Word for the web if the desktop feature has not reached the tenant yet
   • Copilot is available on the Home tab of Word on the web for Copilot subscribers. If the desktop client has not yet received the feature (or is on an unsupported channel), use Word on the web as an alternative until the rollout reaches the environment.
6. Be aware of gradual rollout and platform limits
   • Some Copilot experiences in Word (such as automatic summaries at the top of the page and the related Copilot pane) are being rolled out gradually and may currently be available only in Word for the web. The documentation notes that certain controls (like choosing Brief/Standard/Detailed summaries) are “currently only available in Word for the web” and will come to other platforms later.

If all the above conditions are met (correct license, supported channel, latest build, privacy settings enabled), the Copilot entry point (button/pane at the top) appears automatically; there is no separate option in File → Options → Copilot to force it to show.

References:

• How to find and enable missing Copilot button in Microsoft 365 apps
• Create a summary of your document with Copilot in Word