Church Bulletin Templates

Guide

What to Use Instead of Microsoft Publisher

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There's no single program that does everything Publisher did. For the things most churches and clubs actually make (a folded bulletin, a monthly newsletter, a program, a flyer), the answer is usually a program you already have. Here's what each option is good at, what it isn't, and what it costs.

What Microsoft recommends

Microsoft's retirement page includes a table of "where to start" for common Publisher jobs (Microsoft Support). For the jobs on this site, it points to Word every time:

  • NewsletterWord
  • Programs, folded paper projectsWord
  • Labels and envelopesWord
  • Brochures, flyers, calendarsWord or PowerPoint
  • Banners, signs, postersPowerPoint

Microsoft Word: the one you probably have

If you had Publisher through Microsoft 365, you still have Word. It's the safest choice for a church office because the next volunteer almost certainly knows it too.

Good at: text, tables, two-column layouts, styles that keep headings consistent, printing folded booklets (its Book fold setting), and mail merge for address labels.

Not so good at: placing things freely on the page. Publisher let you drop a text box anywhere; in Word, boxes and pictures that "float" tend to move when the text around them changes. The fix is to build pages from columns and tables instead of loose boxes. Every template on this site is built that way, which is why they keep their shape when you type.

Cost: included with Microsoft 365 or Office.

Google Docs: free, and easy to share

Google Docs runs in a web browser and is free with a Google account. It opens Word files you upload and can save them back as Word files (Google: work with Office files).

Good at: working with other people. The pastor can type the letter into the same newsletter you're laying out, and nobody emails files back and forth. It supports columns and column breaks (Google's column help).

Not so good at: fine layout and printing. It has fewer layout controls than Word, and its page setup has no booklet option like Word's Book fold, so a folded bulletin needs to be laid out ready to print, the way our templates are. It also needs an internet connection unless you set up offline use.

Cost: free.

LibreOffice: free, and it opens old .pub files

LibreOffice is a free office suite for Windows, Mac and Linux (download page). Its word processor, Writer, opens and saves Word files, and its drawing program, Draw, can open old Publisher files (LibreOffice lists the filter as "Microsoft Publisher 98-2010").

Good at: being free on any computer, including an old one; opening your Publisher archive; printing a brochure from an ordinary document (LibreOffice's brochure printing help).

Not so good at: looking familiar. The menus are close to older versions of Word but not identical, and there's no company help line. Draw, the program that opens .pub files, is a drawing program; the Document Foundation says it "is not a desktop publishing application" (Document Foundation blog).

Cost: free.

Affinity: real page layout, now free

Affinity is a professional design program (page layout, photo editing and illustration in one app) owned by Canva. Its website says it is "free for individuals," with downloads for Mac and Windows (affinity.studio).

Good at: page layout, the job Publisher did, with far more control over where text and pictures sit than Word gives you.

Not so good at: being simple. It's a tool made for designers, so expect a learning curve. Its site lists PSD, AI, IDML and DWG among the file types it brings in; Publisher's .pub isn't on that list, so convert old files to PDF first.

Cost: free for individuals, according to its site.

The Methodist Church in Britain, advising its churches in April 2026, called Affinity's layout app the closest like-for-like replacement for Publisher and suggested Canva for simpler, single-page designs such as posters and social media graphics (Methodist Church blog). Its prices and charity programs are British, but the reasoning travels. The same post says Affinity "can open most Microsoft Publisher files." Affinity's own site doesn't list .pub among the file types it brings in, so try one copy of a file before you count on it, and keep a PDF of each old file either way.

Scribus: free desktop publishing

Scribus is open-source desktop publishing software, and like LibreOffice it uses libmspub to import Publisher files (Document Foundation blog). It's the closest free program to Publisher in what it does, but it saves in its own format rather than a standard one, and it takes some learning. Its home page is scribus.net.

How to choose

Ask four questions:

  1. Who else has to edit it? If the job passes between volunteers, choose what they already know. That's usually Word, or Google Docs for a team.
  2. Does it need to work on an old computer, or without internet? Word or LibreOffice, not Google Docs.
  3. How fancy is the layout? A bulletin, newsletter or program works in Word. A magazine-style newsletter with photos wrapping around stories is where Affinity or Scribus earn their learning curve.
  4. What does the church already pay for? If Microsoft 365 is in the budget, Word is already paid for.

For most church offices, the honest answer is: Word, starting from a template that's already laid out, with LibreOffice Draw on hand for opening old .pub files. You don't have to decide forever. All of these programs can save a PDF, so whatever you choose, keep a PDF of every bulletin and newsletter you send out. If you ever switch again, your archive comes with you.

Start with our ten free templates, or read how to open your old Publisher files.

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