Microsoft Word

Review the document you already have open

The Counsel AI add-in puts the same 14 legal workflows into Word itself. Pull the document text into the pane with one click, run an NDA triage or a DPA review against it, and drop the analysis back into the file as a tracked Word comment — without copying anything between windows.

✓Reads the open document directly — no export, no upload step.
✓Inserts the result as a Word comment on your selection, so the analysis sits next to the clause it concerns.
✓Same account, same plan, same monthly allowance as the web app.
✓Your document text is sent to Counsel AI only when you press Run.

Install it

Download the manifest, then pick the install route below that matches how you use Word — the recommended firm-wide route is a one-time, two-minute upload.

Download manifest

Requires Microsoft 365, Word 2021 or later, or Word on the web. Comment insertion needs Word 2021 or Microsoft 365; everything else works on older builds.

No account yet? Start a free trial — you can sign in from inside the pane.

Recommended: install once for your whole firm

One person does a two-minute upload in the Microsoft 365 admin centre, and the add-in simply appears in Word — on Windows, Mac and the web — for everyone you assign it to. Nobody else installs anything. This is the easiest route even for a firm of one.

Open the Microsoft 365 admin centreGo to admin.microsoft.com and sign in with the account you use to manage Microsoft 365. Running a small practice on Microsoft 365 Business? That is usually your own everyday account — you are the admin.
Upload the add-inGo to Settings › Integrated apps › Upload custom apps, choose Office Add-in, then either upload the manifest file you downloaded or pick Provide link to manifest file and paste https://counsel-ai.org/counselai-word-addin.manifest.xml.
Choose who gets itAssign it to yourself, specific people, or the whole firm, and accept. That is the only setup anyone has to do — ever.
Wait for Word to pick it upA Counsel AI button appears on the Home ribbon in Word on Windows, Mac and the web — usually within the hour, occasionally up to 24. Click Review document to open the pane and sign in inside it.

Just you, in Word on the web

No admin involved: download the manifest with the button above, then upload it inside Word on the web.

Open a document in Word on the webAny document in OneDrive or SharePoint will do.
Go to the add-ins dialogHome › Add-ins › More Add-ins, then the My Add-ins tab.
Upload My Add-inSelect Upload My Add-in and browse to the manifest file you downloaded. The Counsel AI button appears on the Home ribbon. (This upload button exists only in Word on the web — desktop Word does not have it.)

Just you, in Word for Mac

Desktop Word has no upload button, but on a Mac the whole install is one line. Open Terminal (press ⌘ space, type Terminal, press return), then copy this line in and press return:

curl -fsSL https://counsel-ai.org/counselai-word-addin.manifest.xml --create-dirs -o ~/Library/Containers/com.microsoft.Word/Data/Documents/wef/counselai-word-addin.manifest.xml

Quit and reopen Word. Counsel AI appears under Home › Add-ins › My Add-ins (older ribbons: Insert › Add-ins) — click it once and the button stays on your ribbon.

Word for Windows (desktop)

Microsoft provides no simple per-user install for desktop Word on Windows — the honest answer is to use the firm-wide route at the top of this page (it covers desktop Word automatically) or work in Word on the web. If your IT provider manages your Microsoft 365, forward them this page; the firm-wide upload is a two-minute job.

The add-in loads its pages from counsel-ai.org over HTTPS, so allow that host if your organisation restricts add-in domains.

If it does not appear

Close and reopen Word — the ribbon group is added when Word starts.
Firm-wide installs can take up to 24 hours to reach every ribbon, though most appear within the hour.
The pane says “Open this inside Microsoft Word” if you visit /addin/taskpane in an ordinary browser. That is expected — it needs the Word host to read your document.
Still stuck? See the knowledge base article or ask the support assistant in the bottom-right.

Analyses run from Word are AI drafts for review by a qualified solicitor and are not legal advice. They count against your plan’s monthly allowance exactly as web runs do.