publisher for mac alternative - cover

6 Best Microsoft Publisher Alternatives For Mac (Free & Paid, Tested & Reviewed)

Nick Mead
Best Software
88
Last updated:

Although there has never been a version of Microsoft Publisher For Mac, we’ve tested and reviewed the best replacements for it to do desktop publishing in macOS in 2024.

We looked at a range of options for all levels and budgets that support designing publications both in print and online.

All the tools we tested are suitable for creating various publications including newsletters, brochures, booklets, magazines, newspapers, leaflets, eBooks, flyers, banners, invitations and more.

Here then are best replacements for MS Publisher on a Mac in order of ranking.

1. Pages (Free)

pages for mac

Pages is Apple’s free word processing software for Macs and is the closest thing you’ll find to a free replacement for Microsoft Publisher on a Mac.

Pages used to be part of Apple’s iWork suite but nowadays its included for free with any new Mac and is also available to download from the Mac App Store.

Although Pages is more commonly used for word processing, it is also capable of desktop publishing with lots of templates and layout tools for publications of all kind.

Working-out how to format things, insert tables and move elements around the page is not very intuitive if you’re used to Microsoft’s prouducts but only until you’re familiar with the Apple way of doing things.

You can read our full review of Apple Pages for more.

Pricing: Free in macOS

Pros:

  • Made by Apple and free to use
  • Suitable for both word processing and layout design
  • Easy to use (when you get used to it)
  • Lots of templates

Cons:

  • Not suitable for professional desktop publishing
  • Focused more on word processing than DTP

2. Adobe InDesign

indesign for mac

Adobe InDesign is easily the best professional desktop publishing software for Mac by some distance and a great option for those that need something more powerful.

It’s used professionally for everything from creating stationary, flyers, annual reports, calendars and posters to professional magazines, online interactive digital publications and e-books.

InDesign has become far more accessible to the average user too with an easier to use layout that’s closer to the Microsoft Office style ribbon interface and toolbox.

Adobe has simplified InDesign a lot to appeal to a wider market and there are also plenty of easy to follow InDesign video tutorials to help you get to grips with the software.

More recently, Adobe has added its amazing Firefly AI text-to-image capabilities to InDesign which allows you to conjure any image you want by giving it a description. We recently tried this in Adobe Express and were amazed at the way it turns any non-graphic designer into a pro.

If you need professional print capabilities, InDesign also uses a clever “PreFlight” system to check documents for issues to meet the requirements of commercial printing.

You can also check our full review of Adobe InDesign for a more in-depth look.

Pricing: $22.99/m or 60% off with Creative Cloud Educational Discount.

Pros:

  • Industry standard app for desktop publishing
  • Incredibly powerful at creating layouts
  • Thousands of professional templates
  • Creates amazing offline and interactive online publications
  • Mac desktop app and can be used offline and online
  • Uses Adobe Firefly AI text-to-art generator

Cons:

  • Limited PDF editing options
  • Subscription pricing

3. Scribus (Free)

scribus for mac

Scribus is a free open source layout software and although it’s not the most polished product out there, it is 100% free to use.

Scribus is popular among amateur authors for creating books but can also be used to create magazines, brochures, newsletters and posters.

If you’ve used a desktop publishing program before, the interface to Scribus will look familiar but you really have to feel your way around it.

Note that at the moment, only the development version of Scribus 1.5.5 or newer works on 64 bit versions of macOS including Sonoma and it can be unstable and crash randomly.

There is no native Apple Silicon Mac version either although it works on M-chip Macs thanks to Rosetta in macOS.

You can check out our full review of Scribus for more.

Pricing: Free

Pros:

  • Free open source desktop software
  • Surprisingly powerful layout tools
  • Great for book publishing

Cons:

  • Not suitable for professional publishing
  • No native Apple Silicon version
  • Only development version works on latest versions of macOS

4. Swift Publisher

swift publisher for mac

If you want something that looks and feels like MS Publisher, then Swift Publisher is a user-friendly desktop publishing application that’s the best alternative to Publisher for beginners.

If monthly or annual subscriptions are not for you, Swift Publisher is excellent value for money too for just a one off purchase fee of $19.99.

It doesn’t require lots of learning like professional DTP software but produces slick results with minimal effort.

It also includes many professional features you get in expensive DTP software such as Master pages, guide lines, grid layers, tables and more.

It’s ideal for producing booklets, bulletins, flyers or brochures and makes rearranging elements such as images, tables and text very easy.

Swift Publisher has an extensive range of over 500 professional looking templates which you can customize and create layouts quickly.

There are also more advanced touches like the possibility to define bleeds and configure correct DPI for print publishing.

If you want an easy to use DTP app that’s similar to MS Publisher but without a steep learning curve or monthly subscription fees, then Swift Publisher is an excellent, value for money tool.

You can read our full Swift Publisher review here.

Pricing: Starting from $19.99.

Pros:

  • One time purchase
  • Easy to learn for beginners
  • Similar interface to Microsoft Publisher
  • Impressive professional level DTP layout tools
  • Lots of templates
  • Good value for money

Cons:

  • Lacks professional desktop publishing tools
  • Not suitable for complex layouts
  • No stock photography or video integration

5. Affinity Publisher

affinity publisher for mac

Affinity Publisher is a slick desktop publishing software for magazines, marketing material, flyers, brochures, newsletters, social media templates and more.

It has become a popular option for all those Mac users that want a one-off purchase desktop publishing software as there are no subscriptions involved.

Affinity Publisher is suitable for professional DTP work on a Mac and is also integrated into Affinity’s suite of design software which includes Affinity Designer for graphic design and Affinity Photo for image editing.

It also includes professional touches like Pantone support, end-to-end CMYK and ICC Color management making it a far more powerful alternative to MS Publisher.

The Affinity Suite, including Affinity Publisher can also be used on iPad to edit on the move or when you’re away from your Mac although the iOS app costs extra.

It also works on Windows so if you want to collaborate on desktop publishing projects with PC users it’s easy to share files and edit them together.

There’s no free trial of Affinity Publisher but it is available as a one-off purchase for $69.99.

Pricing: $69.99

Pros:

  • One time purchase
  • Professional level desktop publishing software
  • Pantone, CMYK and ICC support
  • Excellent iPad app
  • Works across macOS and Windows

Cons:

  • Does not support major formats like .docx, .txt or .rtf
  • Interface can be quite overwhelming for beginners
  • No free trial

6. Marq (Lucidpress)

marq (formerly lucidpress)

Marq (previously known as Lucidpress) promotes itself as a “brand templating platform” and is an easy to use online desktop publishing software.

Marq is extremely user friendly and helps you to create extremely professional looking print and digital publications including magazines, newsletters, posters, flyers, reports, digital magazines and more.

There’s nothing to download with Marq as it’s all cloud based and the basic version is free to use although way too limited for serious publishing work.

Marq allows you to easily drag and drop elements, import text from Google Docs, add tables, buttons and insert interactive media such as YouTube videos.

It’s very easy to do common tasks like change the size of your canvas, undo edits and edit headers and footers in Marq.

One of the most striking things about Marq is the huge range of professional looking templates ranging from posters and invitations to gift certificates and business cards.

Templates are optimized for high quality 300dpi printing although this is only available in the Professional Plan of Marq.

You can even import Adobe InDesign files into Marq although the results often aren’t perfect and you’ll find a lot of elements missing.

The basic single user version of Marq is completely free to use but is limited to 3 documents and 3 pages so it’s not suitable for serious desktop publishing.

To remove these limits and get other benefits such as print quality PDFs, document embedding and premium templates, the Professional Plans starts at $10 per month.

You can check out out full Marq Review for more.

Pricing: Free for 3 documents/Plans start at $10 per month

Pros:

  • Works on all platforms including Mac online
  • Very easy to use
  • Lots of templates
  • Excellent for brand building
  • Limited free version

Cons:

  • Too basic for complex layouts
  • No Mac desktop app
  • InDesign import tool doesn’t work well

Can These Apps Import Publisher Files?

In our research, we found that there are no desktop publishing tools that can import Microsoft Publisher files in its native .PUB format.

However, you can export files from Microsoft Publisher in PDF and XPS format by going to File > Export > Create PDF/XPS Document > Create PDF/XPS.

You can then import the PDF or XPS file into the Publisher replacements we reviewed.

export from microsoft publisher

Why Is There No version of Publisher for Mac?

Microsoft has never released a version of Publisher on Mac and you won’t find it included in the desktop version of Office for Mac or Microsoft 365 on a Mac.

Microsoft has never given an official reason why it has never released it but the most likely reason is because Mac users still represent a relatively small number of Microsoft product users.

It’s worth noting that Microsoft doesn’t always release Mac versions of its Windows products. Other examples include Microsoft Access and Microsoft Visio both of which also aren’t available for Mac.

It’s also worth being aware that Microsoft Publisher will be discontinued anyway in October 2026.

Can You Open Publisher Files On a Mac?

There is no desktop publishing software that can open the native MS Publisher .PUB file format on a Mac.

However, if you want to just view or open Publisher files there are ways to open Publisher files on Mac by converting them into another format which you can then open in the publishing apps reviewed here.

Bear in mind though that the resulting exported documents can often be badly formatted with important elements missing.

Can You Run MS Publisher On a Mac?

If only the real thing will do, then it is possible to install MS Publisher on a Mac by running Windows on a Mac.

There are various ways to do this but for Microsoft Publisher, we found that using a virtual machine is the best way to do it.

If you want to go down this route, you can find instructions how to run Publisher on a Mac.

Discover more from MacHow2

Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.

Avatar photo
Nick Mead
Nick founded MacHow2 in 2013 and has a bachelor's degree in Journalism. Nick started life as a tech journalist and created MacHow2 mainly to help users like himself that had switched from Windows to macOS (and never looked back). Since then the site has evolved into one of the biggest independent online resources for Mac users new and old. You can follow him on X or get in touch via email below or the contact form at the top of the site.

88 Responses

  1. What about Affinity Publisher? Very powerful, from design to press capability and fairly simple to use. Have a look at Affinity products. Ive used. them for years when they were Serif products on Windows PC’s and now on my Mac and iPad. Far cheaper than Adobe and much better!

    Reply

  4. Fascinating to see the absence of the original heavyweight DTP software, which I still use every day: Quark XPress. It’s not as brilliant as it was at, say, version 9, but it’s still a powerful tool for designing just about anything that will appear in print. If you don’t mind using a version that gets older year by year (for example, I use both version 9 and version “2017”), its advantage over Adobe software is that you can buy it and there’s no recurring “rental” fee in perpetuity.

    Reply

  7. Scribus does not work on 64 bit Macs, the link on the Scribus web site only links to the 32 bit file (unless you are confident to install the CLI version).
    Once you download it (last stable update seems to be in 2019), your Mac says to contact the developer.

    Reply

  9. Affinity Publisher is an amazing application (available for both Windows, Mac OS and iOS platforms). It integrates well with Affinity Designer and Affinity Photo – to the point of being able to access those application tools from with the Publisher app itself via StudioLink. I’ve been beyond impressed thus far. My suggestion would be to try out the demo version(s) to see if they meet your needs. Also, I would encourage downloading and purchasing from the developer site rather than the app store(s) due to some “quirky” sandboxing issues that come with the app store versions.

    Reply

  10. Scribus certainly DOES support export as PDF. I do it all the time. You also have an option to export to an image format if you really want to do that.

    Reply

  12. Thank you for the great review!! It’s a very good rundown on some good software. In fact, I am now paused and waiting for more information on the relatively new “Affinity Publisher” program. It was the last item in your review and had the least information to consider. If you look closer at the “Affinity Publisher” software anytime soon, I would really like to hear your review of it. I almost bought into the InDesign/Adobe scam (I already have the Photoshop/Lightroom package), but the price is just to much. It seems the Affinity “Package” (Publish, Photo, and Design together) might be a good option. Anyway, any additional info you may have to offer would be appreciated. Thanks – – Carl

    Reply

  13. Hi there! I’m working in Cambodia and I’m trying to find a designing program that works well with khmer language. Do you know out of all these programs which one works best with a Mac and the foreign languages?

    Reply

  14. You lack here a very important app it’s called “Viva Designer” available in multiple Languages (German Produkt) very acurate. Desktop, On-Line and Database Publishing Solutions available.

    Reply

    1. Thanks for the tip. VivaDesigner is a powerful desktop publishing tool which is a lot more advanced than MS Publisher but is certainly worth a mention. We’ve added it to the list.

      Reply

  15. I need to modify my logo (made in Photoshop by someone else, that’s a .PNG) and I’d like to make brochures (I’m just a small healthcare office). I used to make things in publisher all the time in my past office life but don’t know adobe “that” well 🙂 What’s my best bet?
    Thank you so much for updating this and creating this list in the first place!!

    Reply

    1. Thanks for stopping by. If you’re a small business just making brochures, then you should find that Lucidpress is sufficient for your needs. It has plenty of templates for making brochures. Adobe’s software produces considerably more professional results but takes longer to learn and may be a bit too much if you just want to edit a logo and make brochures. Hope this helps!

      Reply

  16. Thanks. I am sorry that I phrased my question so poorly. I am wondering how the upgrades with El Capitan and with the software (to run on El Capitan) have changed how they work together? Better, worse, the same? I have noticed (can’t remember which ones right now) that some software that was supposed to run on El Capitan have some glitches. This happens to me every time there is an upgrade somewhere.

    I just re-downloaded LibreOffice and am having some issues the the program freezing and crashing. I had stopped using it for that reason and went with Open Office. Thought I would try it again, based on recommendations from a friend.

    Reply

    1. The problem with open source solutions like Libre Office and Open Office is that they are often slow to update to the latest versions of OSX. If you buy one of the other apps listed in this article, the developer is more likely to update the app quickly when new versions of OSX are released. However, even then it can take some time for them to catch up and update the app.

      Reply

  17. Hi all. Last fall I got my new Mac Mini and am now finally getting ready to do two major projects. Have you looked at how these various programs will work on El Capitan? (I just got a new mini with El Capitan!)

    Reply

    1. All of them should work on El Capitan as most developers have now had enough time to update their software for it. Those that are in the Mac App Store state clearly in the minimum operating system requirements if they do or not. For the rest, it’s of course always best to check the developer website first to make sure.

      Reply

  18. Thank you so much for this article! I’ve been working for years in Publisher and on a PC and am switching to Mac this week. I have hundreds of documents that I need to transfer over to a Mac DTP program. This article has been the most comprehensive and helpful that I’ve seen anywhere. You’ve helped my stress levels immensely!

    I’m thinking of opening the .PUB docs in LibreOffice and then saving as a Mac friendly doc that I can then use and edit in one of the other programs you mentioned. From your review above, I’m debating between iStudio Publisher, Pages and Publisher Plus. Does that sound like the best option for converting?

    Thanks again, so much, for posting this helpful article!

    Reply

    1. Sarah, Glad the article helped you! As regards your question, you could do exactly that – open the .pub files in LibreOffice and then save them in a format that can be opened by iStudio, Pages, Publisher Plus etc. Our advice would be to download LibreOffice for Mac and try opening your .pub files first to make sure it opens the file correctly before purchasing one of the Publisher alternatives for Mac featured here.

      Reply

  19. I wonder if you can help me, Ive read your very informative article but still have questions. I am considering buying my daughter a mac book pro for her A level coursework but she uses Publisher at school and would need to work on the documents on her Mac. Would she be better off with a windows laptop?? She will need to switch between school pc and Macbook easily for the next two years with her publisher coursework files. What do you think?

    Reply

    1. Hi Polly, We could never recommend to anyone buying a PC whatever their needs 🙂 Once you’ve used a Mac, you’ll soon see the benefits in terms of reliability, ease of use, no need for virus protection and less problems in general than using Windows. The best thing in her case would be to install Parallels on the Mac which enables her to run Windows on the Mac. She can then install Microsoft Publisher within this. This will cost a few hundred pounds extra for both the Parallels software and a copy of Windows to install, but it will save her a lot of hassle in the long run dealing with problems with Windows or a PC. Then she can enjoy the best of both worlds 🙂

      Reply

        1. Good point but probably more expensive for the school I suspect. If she’s going to pursue desktop publishing in the future, Neil is right though – a Mac will stand her in far better stead after her A-levels too than a PC.

          Reply

        2. Ive emailed the school ……..watch this space! We have and iMac and iPads at home so know how good they are. It makes sense for her to have a Macbook but the only stumbling block is Publisher. It looks as though I will have to invest in the Parallels software.
          Many thanks for your help. The Apple Store were not very helpful, although they suggested I go to a forum to get advice!

          Reply

          1. Ok let us know what happens! Surprised that Apple didn’t at least suggest using virtualization software such as Parallels to run Windows on a Mac but the advice you get from Genius Bars sometimes depends on who is serving you it seems.

      2. Hi all, so I bought the MacBook on Saturday from the Apple Store but they were not able to help me with the software issue unfortunately. I went to PC World and found two very helpful guys who advised me the best way forward was indeed to download Parallels, then load Windows and then Publisher. PC World had a bundle offer so Parallels and Windows was £119 and Microsoft Office 365 was £49.99. I’m delighted to say I loaded everything up on Saturday evening and all went without a hitch. My daughter is delighted and she can work on her coursework on Publisher at home and at school.
        Thank you for all your help and support.

        Reply

  20. Thanks so much for this helpful article! I’ve been going around and around all day looking for a solution, and you explained everything. Much appreciated!

    Reply

  22. I have used windows (publisher) for years as a teacher. I just purchased a Mac and so disappointed it does not support publisher. I need an easy alternative – of the ones listed which one is most similar to publisher. Maybe I should return and get a windows pc.

    Reply

    1. Becky, There’s no need to get a Windows PC. If you want an easy Publisher like alternative, any of LucidPress, Swift Publisher or iStudio Publisher will suit you.

      Reply

  23. What a thoughtful and amazingly helpful article. Thank you so very much! I am still unsure of what I’ll do, but knowing that there is someone out there who understands is a reassuring feeling. Thank you for taking the edge off my worries!

    Reply

  26. This is exactly the kind of help I needed. I’m sick of being on the $Adobe$ InDesign bandwagon and needed to understand where my alternatives lay. Thank you for such an in-depth article.

    Reply

  28. Are all of these programs able to handle a 200 page book with text and photos? I don’t want to start something only to find out halfway into it that it can’t handle the amount of pages. Thanks in advance.

    Reply

  29. What would be the best program to create a custom map that I can publish to the web? I would like to be able to draw a beautiful map (not by hand) and make it interactive (probably by using a program like mapsalive on the web unless there is a capability to do it in a program that you suggest).

    I also need to make a custom search box for my website that has drop downs and buttons. I have already created the custom links, I just need the html box to control it, and would like to design it myself.

    The more affordable, the better. Thank you in advance!

    Reply

    1. Thanks and glad it helped you! Of the programs reviewed, Microsoft Word, QuarkXPress and Adobe In-Design all work on both Mac and PC.

      Reply

    1. Hi Bill, Glad it helped you. iStudio is excellent, especially if you’re not very familiar with Desktop Publishing Programs. It has lots of easy to follow tutorials for beginners and produces very professional results.

      Reply

  34. HI, The only reason I need to use publisher on my Mac is to create the curved text from the Wordart function. I use it in my family tree artwork designs that you can view on my website attached if you would like to see what I mean…
    I was going to try and find a friend with Windows 7 to install using bootcamp. The friendly guy at JB Hi Fi suggested this today…! Is this the best way to go or is there a program/app on the mac that will create curved text? Thanks Chels

    Reply

  35. Walt thanks so much for the article! It is just what I needed. I am transitioning from PC to Macbk and I am struggling a bit. Publisher is something I have had to work with a great deal and having some options to look at are very much appreciated! I should be fine overall as I have iPhone and iPad for years, just need to more fully take the leap now.

    Reply

  38. if i use pages to do my work, can i reopen the files in a windows 7 OS without downloading Pages ??

    Reply

    1. I’m afraid the best you’ll get is using Word as described at the beginning of the post above. Otherwise, you’ll have to use an alternative.

      Reply

  42. I am thinking of going to a Mac and was curious about my MS Publisher files and potentially switching to Mac DTP program. Your information was extremely helpful in assisting me in my decision. Thanks for the great information.
    Alvin

    Reply

  43. I did purchase Printfolio Bundle and Swift Publisher 3, but I will admit that it is not as easy as Publisher to navigate. I got so frustrated, trying to put together a tri-fold brochure, (time sensitive) that I returned to a MS Word (for Mac) template to finish project. I don’t have lots of time to be a “student” of new software, so not sure this will keep me away from MS Pubisher. We’ll see!

    Reply

  44. This is an EXCELLENT article on Mac versions of Publisher! I’ve been struggling with the decision as to whether to buy or not to buy new Pubisher version, run with Parallels, but have heard pros & cons against it. You are so right–I used the Publishing layout view in MS Word 2011 which I’ve never done, and it works great. I was preparing a tri-fold brochure, used a great template, recolored it to match my theme colors and so far, so good.

    This is an easy-to-understand, self explanatory article that helped me make up my mind to stick with Mac software and as you so aptly stated it, I will leave the world of Publisher behind!!!

    Thanks so much for taking time to explain Mac options in user friendly terms!!!

    Reply

    1. Thanks Dorothy for your kind comments. It’s really great to get feedback like this and that the post helped you so much. Please remember to share it with friends on Facebook and Twitter so that it may help others too.

      Reply

    2. I agree with Dorothy J. This article is a great read: well constructed, informative, easy to follow. Thanks for taking the time to put this together. Very helpful.

      Reply

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

error:

Discover more from MacHow2

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading