why does my document look crazy when I convert from Mac Pages to Word?
Is there any way to convert a Mac Pages document into a format that can be opened in Word without it looking like a bunch of columns?
MacBook Air 13″, macOS 10.14
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No. Pages translates the Pages document format on export to Word. Features unique to Pages will not translate, and Apple does not guarantee that the export will be accurate or appear in Word as it does in Pages. If you have access to Word 16.31 or later, you can export your Pages document to PDF, and then open the PDF in Word, which will convert it to a Word .docx document. That may or may not render a better result in Word.
Otherwise, if you absolutely need content to appear correctly in Word, I recommend that you purchase the current Microsoft 365 or Office 2021 for Mac, where saving a Word document in its native document format avoids the Pages translation chaos. Of course, you will need macOS Big Sur (11.*) or later to install current Microsoft applications now.
Alternatively, Softmaker's Office 2024 for Mac is supported on Mojave (10.14.*) or later, opens and saves Microsoft documents in their native formats, and actually has a more true Office for Mac appearance. They offer a free trial.
Compare Softmaker's solution to the free LibreOffice Suite. Sometimes free is more work.