The first point release update to the recent LibreOffice 25.8 release is available — sooner than usual — with almost 100 bug fixes to further improve the finesse of this free, open-source office suite.

LibreOffice 25.8.1’s most important fixes center on Microsoft Office’s “proprietary” file formats, like DOCX, PPTX, and XLSX. Per the release notes, some users had hit issues after opening and editing these files in the latest release.

For instance, charts in XLS files often appeared vertically squashed in Calc, Calc failed to recognise cell names for XLSB binary files, and failed to show all sheets in XLSX files which had been modified using exceljs.

In Writer, text justification in DOCX files using Times New Roman was off, floating tables appeared at the top of the next page instead of the bottom of the intended, and image/shape left/right margin (aka text wrap) was incorrect if image was left/right aligned.  

Not ideal; now solved.

Another important bug fixed from the initial 25.8.0 release involves a crash that could occur under certain conditions if LibreOffice’s alternative UI layouts (including the one that looks like the Microsoft Office Ribbon) was enabled.

Also not ideal, and also now solved.

For a full list of bugs fixed in this update, refer to 25.8.1 RC wiki page.

The Document Foundation, the non-profit who fund and develop LibreOffice, don’t have it easy. They are forever on the back foot trying to support Microsoft’s document format (OOXML), which often adds enhancements or tweaks that affect compatibility in non-Microsoft software.

To that end, The Document Foundation recently released an ODF migration guide to help inform the public, businesses, and education institutions about the benefits of open document formats versus those designed to “lock-in” users to using Microsoft products.

Trivia: since its release just under two weeks ago, LibreOffice 25.8 has been downloaded more than 640,000 times across all supported operating systems — clear demand for free alternatives to Microsoft Office.

Get LibreOffice 25.8.1

LibreOffice 25.8.1 is available to download from the official website for Windows, macOS and Linux.

Ubuntu users opt for the appropriate DEB bundle (the README inside explains how to install them properly). LibreOffice is also available on the Snap Store and from Flathub, and this update will roll out to you if you have already installed it from there.