These lesser-known Microsoft Office shortcuts could save you hours at work next year

What you need to know

• Microsoft Office 365 ships with a wide array of productivity tools including Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Teams, Outlook, and more.
• Ordinarily, you'll need to log in to your account to access these platforms from the homepage on the app.
• A user has uncovered several domains that can be used to direct a user to new Microsoft Office documents rather than having to navigate through the app to create them.  

Over the past few years, Microsoft Office 365 has increasingly gained traction amongst most organizations and employees. The suite provides users with access to a wide array of productivity tools including, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Teams, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft PowerPoint, and more.

To access these platforms and incorporate them into your workflow, you'll first need to download the Microsoft 365 app from the Microsoft Store. Admittedly, the process can be daunting as there are several versions available in the store. But the main difference between them is how many people can share your access once you get the subscription. This explains the simultaneous availability of the Microsoft 365 Personal and Microsoft 365 Family.

Usually, the user would be required to navigate through the Microsoft Office app on their PC to access the productivity tools. While the process is pretty straightforward, WalkingCat on X (formerly Twitter) has uncovered a cool new way to access these platforms instantaneously. 

The user indicated that it's possible to create new Microsoft 365 documents by visiting the domains listed below:

• word.new
• excel.new
• powerpoint.new
• docx.new
• pptx.new
• ppt.new

Microsoft 365 keeps getting better and easier to use

Right off the bat, Office 365 is widely available across multiple platforms including Mac, iOS, Android, and more. A huge misconception most people have is that the platform is limited to Windows users only. 

Per my analysis, clicking on either one of the domains listed above will automatically be redirected to log in to your Microsoft Account. As a bit of background, I have a Microsoft 365 Family subscription, so upon entering my login credentials, I was immediately directed to a new Microsoft Word document.

While it might seem like a simple and easy trick that doesn't bring a huge difference to the whole process, it essentially helps users save time. And as we all know, that extra minute counts, especially when on a tight deadline. 

What are your thoughts on these new shortcuts that help you access Microsoft Office documents easily? Let us know in the comments.