Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021. If you are using an earlier version (Word 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Word, click here: Locating the My Documents Folder.

Locating the My Documents Folder

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated August 18, 2025)

When creating a macro, you may need to know the full path to the user's My Documents folder. The path can differ, based on the system and the user logged into the system. The easiest way to locate it is through the use of the Environ function, as shown here:

MsgBox Environ("userprofile") & "\My Documents"

This code line displays the full path (including the drive letter) in a message box. If you want to have the path assigned to a string variable instead, you can use this code line:

sMyPath = Environ("userprofile") & "\My Documents"

Note:

If you would like to know how to use the macros described on this page (or on any other page on the WordTips sites), I've prepared a special page that includes helpful information. Click here to open that special page in a new browser tab.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (13115) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Locating the My Documents Folder.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. Learn more about Allen...

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