Word is not displaying images

«I am running Microsoft 365 on my Windows 10 computer. I need to insert PNG images into my document, but after I try to insert the pictures it is showing a box with a red x mark and the message «This image cannot currently be displayed.»

Many users experience an odd issue with their Word document regarding a picture or an object is not showing up in Word. Whenever you open the Microsoft Word file, you can see white spaces or rectangles instead of the images that you have inserted earlier. This is a common issue in MS Word 2007 and 2010. Though the problem can also occur in the later versions of Microsoft Word. 

Many MS Office users complained that they can’t insert pictures in a Word document. In a Word document, when I select insert, then picture, and select picture from my folder, it fails to insert. It only shows me a blank outline of the image but can’t insert the picture in Word.

Moreover, it can also happen with a Word file that contains an object or graphic image. If this is the case, let us understand why such an error is caused and how to fix the Word Document not showing pictures issue with a few easy methods. 

Table of Contents

Why does Word say “This image cannot currently be displayed”?

How do I Fix this “Image Cannot Currently be Displayed” Error?

1. Use the «In line with text» wrapping style option
2. Change the view of the MS Word Application
3. Enable the Show drawings and text boxes on-screen option
4. Enable Print drawings created in Word option
5. Disable Use of draft quality
6. Disable Picture Placeholders
7. Change the problematic Video driver settings

Why does Word say “This image cannot currently be displayed”?

“The images that cannot be displayed currently” 

The main reason behind the issue “This image cannot currently be displayed” in Word is using the “wrapping style” option instead of the «In Line with text» Option with the pictures in the Word document.               

a) Word Wrapping Style

Generally, Text Wrapping is used to manage well the text surrounding the image. However, in some cases using the “Wrapping style” option with your image might make Microsoft Word not show the images. Using the inline option might fix the error. Along with the Word Wrapping style, the following are a few other reasons that can also cause Word not to show images. 

b) Picture Placeholder is Enabled

In some cases even after selecting the inline with text option, your image might not show up in the Word document. It might be because the Picture Placeholder option is enabled.  Generally, the Picture placeholder is used when the Word document has numerous images or items. 

In conditions where word files have a lot of images can be hard to process for a low-spec computer. If you enable the Picture Placeholder option, it will cease all the images to display. Yet images will be in the same position, they just won’t be displayed. This is the best way to reduce the load on the computer. Disabling the picture placeholder might fix your error. In the following sections, you find the instructions on how to change the settings. 

c) Other Settings

Following are a few other settings that can be a reason behind the missing photos in the Word file:

• Word document view is set to Draft view or Outline View.
• If you Show drawings and text boxes on-screen preference in the Options menu is disabled.
• When Print drawings are created in Word choice is deactivated.
• If you have enabled the Use draft quality option.

d) Glitches in Windows Video Driver

Finally, your images on the Word document might not show up content or pictures due to any glitches Windows video driver. However, this is highly rare and there is no possibility of this happening.

In the following section, you will find every little detail on how to fix the error.  

How do I Fix this “Image Cannot Currently be Displayed” Error?

Try the below-explained troubleshoots to solve your Word document not showing pictures problem. The following steps are according to Word in Office 365. The steps will be slightly different for Word 2007 and 2010 but the results will be the same. The difference in Word 2007 is that there is no File option, instead, you have to use the Microsoft Office button. 

1. Use the «In line with text» wrapping style option 

• Click on the inserted image
• Switch to the Right-click on the image
• Click on Wrap Text

• Select In line with Text option

2. Change the view of the MS Word Application

If you are using Draft or Outline view, then select one of the following views:

• Print Layout
• Full-Screen Reading 
• Web Layout

In MS Word 2016 or Office 365 just go to View and select on Print Layout. 

For Word 2010: Click File, and then click Print.

3. Enable the  Show drawings and text boxes on-screen option  

• Go to File and select Options
• Click on the Advanced tab
• Scroll down to see Show document content
• Enable Show drawings and text boxes on-screen option

• Hit OK 
• If you are using Word 2007, click on the Microsoft Office Button and click Word Options. As in Word 2007, instead of File, there is a Microsoft Office button.

4. Enable Print drawings created in Word option 

• Hit the File tab and go to Options
• Jump to Display
• In Printing options, enable Print drawings created in Word option

• Apply changes

 5. Disable Use draft quality

• Hit the File tab and go to Options
• Jump to Display
• In Printing options
• Uncheck Use the draft quality option
• Opt OK

6. Disable Picture Placeholders

• Go to File and select Options
• Click on the Advanced tab
• Scroll down to see Show document content
• Uncheck Show Picture Placeholders Preference

• Hit OK 

7. Change the problematic Video driver settings

For Windows 10:

• Go to Desktop and right-click
• Select Graphics Properties and then in the next window select Video
• Change your Windows video driver color quality settings and screen resolution.
• Try updating the video driver as well if a new update is available 

If none of the above fixations help you, then there might be a possibility that your word file is damaged and as a result of that, it is not showing some content. In such situations, you have to adapt to a  Word repair tool to fix the error. To do so, try to repair your DOC file / DOCX file using the Remo Word Repair utility. The Remo Repair Word is capable of solving any issues related to the Word document, regardless of the reason behind the corruption.

The best possible way to avoid any kind of error on Word doc is by creating multiple copies as a backup. However, you should know for a fact that even those copies are exposed to issues. Hence, it is strongly suggested to have Remo Repair on your Hands to fix any word-related issues.

Updated on October 28, 2022

MS Word is the most friendly text editor application which makes it possible to create, store or convey documents with specific information. One can include various objects such as text, hyperlinks, clip arts, charts, OEL objects, images, video, and a lot more in a Word file. However, images or any objects present in the Word file may not display due to a number of reasons.

Generally, Word document does show images or other elements when you are using the “Wrapping style” option instead of the “In line with text” option. So, first, check which option you are using and modify if the “Wrapping style” option is enabled as follows:

• Click on the respective image or element
• On the Format tab, select Text Wrapping in the “Arrange group”
• Click the In line with text option in the drop-down list

Other than this issue, pictures are not visible in Word documents when the “Show drawings and text boxes on-screen” or “Print drawings created in Word” option is disabled or the “Use draft quality option” is enabled in it. In a few events, while accessing the document file in the “Draft or Online view” view option, you may not find images placed in a particular location. So, try to enable or disable respective options in the Word file as specified previously and fix the problems.

However, even large size of Word file, virus attacks, improper termination of MS Word tool, or conflicts between objects embedded in Word document may cause this kind of trouble. In case, if Word file is corrupted because of these factors and displays images partially, then don’t worry!! Make use of accurate Word file repair application to fix Word document that does not show images on Windows computer.

How to Repair Word Document Not Showing Pictures?

Yodot DOC Repair is well-organized software which used to repair Word document (DOC and DOCX) that does not display images in Microsoft Office Word application. This tool thoroughly scans partial Word file and troubleshoot any type of its issues in simple steps. You can also
fix Word object corrupt no longer available error caused due to conflicts between various objects of Word document such as images, text, tables, videos, charts, hyperlinks, OLE objects and many more elements.

Steps to Fix Word File That is Not Showing Images Issue:

• Download Yodot DOC Repair program on Windows computer
• Run the utility and follow on-screen guidelines
• From the first screen, select corrupt Word document by using the Browse button.
• After selection, to initiate the repair procedure click on the Repair button.
• Then, this application scans damaged Word files, which can be observed in the progress bar.
• After completion, you can View a Word document with its file description.
• In the end, Save the fixed Word file to your desired location on the Windows system .

Microsoft Word – Pictures Not Showing. If you are using Word and you see white rectangles instead of images in your documents, you might have “Show picture placeholders” set. Scroll down, and then under “Show document content” uncheck “Show picture placeholders”. Click OK.

How do you fix this image Cannot currently be displayed?

How do you Fix this “Image Cannot Currently be Displayed” Error?

1. Use the “In line with text” wrapping style option for Microsoft Word images.
2. Change the view of the MS Word Application.
3. Enable the Show drawings and text boxes on-screen option.
4. Enable Print drawings created in Word option.
5. Disable Use draft quality.

How do I make a picture accessible in Word?

Add alt text to images, such as pictures and screenshots, so that screen readers can read the text to describe the image to users who can’t see the image. Right-click an image. Select Format Picture > Layout & Properties. Select Alt Text.

How do I unhide a picture in Word?

Step 1: Open your Microsoft Office Word > “Word Options” in Word 2007. (Click “File” > “Options” in Word ) Step 2: Click “Advanced” on the left pane, uncheck “Show picture placeholders” under Show document content. Then you should be able to see your hidden images or pictures in Word document again.

How do I find hidden words?

Method 2: Show Hidden Texts Only

1. First of all, click “File” tab.
2. Then click “Options” to open “Word Options” dialog box.
3. Next click “Display”.
4. Scroll down to “Always show these formatting marks on the screen” section, check “Hidden text” box.
5. Finally, click “OK” to save the setting.

How do you unhide in Word?

Select the hidden text and use Ctrl+Shift+H or the Font > Hidden setting to unhide the text. If you’ve got a lot of hidden text to unhide, or you don’t want to search the whole document for hidden text, no problem.

Is there a way to hide pages in Word?

Select the “Home” tab in the Ribbon, and then click on the arrow in the bottom of the “Font” group (keyboard shortcut: Ctrl+D). The “Font” dialog box opens. Select the “Font” tab, and place a check mark by “Hidden.” Click on “OK.” The selected page is now hidden.

How do I fix the menu bar in Word?

If this doesn’t do it, try these steps:

1. Choose Customize from the Tools menu.
2. Make sure the Toolbars tab is displayed.
3. Scroll down the list of available toolbars until you see the Menu Bar option.
4. It should be impossible to uncheck the check box beside the Menu Bar option, but you can still select the option.
5. Click Yes.

How do I get the toolbar back on the top of my screen?

When you are in Full Screen mode, hover the mouse to the top of the screen to make the Navigation Toolbar and Tab bar appear. You can use one of these to leave Full Screen mode: press the F11 key. click the Maximize button at the right end of the Tab bar.

How do I get my toolbar back on my email?

Chosen solution. Since the beginning of Windows pressing the alt key makes the Menu Bar appear if it is hidden. From the Menu Bar select View-Toolbars and turn the missing toolbars back on. You have to be in the window where the toolbars normally reside.

What is the top bar on a computer screen called?

Menu bar. This toolbar contains various commands that often lead to dialog menus (covered later on this page). Windows computers have this bar at the top of windows; Macs have this bar at the top of the screen instead. The options contained in this toolbar vary greatly from program to program. Title bar.

Which is the menu bar?

A menu bar is a user interface element that contains selectable commands and options for a specific program. In Windows, menu bars are typically located at the top of open windows. While menu bar items vary between applications, most menu bars include the standard File, Edit, and View menus.

What are toolbars in MS Word?

A toolbar is a set of icons or buttons that are part of a software program’s interface or an open window. Microsoft Word has a toolbar with icons that allow you to open, save, and print documents, as well as change the font, text size, and style of the text.

What is ruler in MS Word?

Rulers in Word do more than measure. The horizontal ruler above the document shows the length of the typing line and lets you quickly adjust left and right margins and indents, set tabs, and change column widths. You can hide the rulers to get more room for your document.

What are the tools used in MS Word?

• Indexes.
• Mail Merge.
• Microsoft Chart.
• Object Browser.
• Spelling and Grammar Checking.
• Thesaurus.
• Track Changes.
• Word Count.

What are the icons in MS Word?

Easily insert icons and Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG) files into your Microsoft Office documents, workbooks, email messages, and presentations. Once they’re in place, rotate, color, and resize them with no loss of image quality.

How do I add symbols in Word?

Use ASCII or Unicode character codes to insert a symbol

1. Go to Insert >Symbol > More Symbols.
2. Scroll up or down the list to find the symbol you want. You might have to change the font or the subset to locate it.
3. Towards the bottom right you’ll see boxes for Character code and a from:.

What is purpose of thesaurus tool in MS Word?

The Thesaurus is a software tool that is used in the Microsoft Word document to look up (find) synonyms (words with the same meaning) and antonyms (words with the opposite meaning) for the selected word.

Why header and footer are used in MS Word?

A header is the top margin of each page, and a footer is the bottom margin of each page. Headers and footers are useful for including material that we want to appear on every page of a document such as your name, the title of the document, or page numbers.

What is the use of clipboard in MS Word?

The Office Clipboard stores text and graphics that you copy or cut from anywhere, and it lets you paste the stored items into any other Office file.