Where to enter your Office product key
Applies To
If your purchase of Office or Microsoft 365 came with a product key, you
enter your product key on one of the websites listed below for your product.
After you enter your key, you can download and install Office, or you can
renew your Microsoft 365 subscription.
Having problems with your product key?
Example of an Office or Microsoft 365 product key:
XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX
Microsoft 365, Office 2024, Office 2021, Office 2019, and Office 2016 (PC and
Mac)
Note: Support has ended for Office 2016 for Mac and Office 2019 for
Mac. Learn more
To redeem a new purchase
Step 1: Go to [Link]/setup or [Link]/setup.
Step 2: Sign in with your Microsoft account, or create one if you don't have
one. Be sure to remember this account so that you can install or reinstall
Office later, without a product key.
Important: If you're renewing your Microsoft 365 subscription, enter the
Microsoft account that's associated with your subscription. I can't remember
my Microsoft account.
Step 3: Enter your product key, without hyphens, if prompted. If you don't
see the option to enter your product key, it was entered for you
automatically.
Step 4: Follow the prompts to finish the redemption process.
To install or reinstall Office
If you see the error This product key has already been used when you
enter your product key on [Link]/setup or [Link]/setup,
this means your product key has already been redeemed and is no longer
needed.
Instead, use your Microsoft account to sign in to [Link] and
install your Office product.
Note: If you're trying to allow up to 5 other people to install Office using
your Microsoft 365 Family subscription, see How to share your Microsoft 365
Family subscription benefit.
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Microsoft Workplace Discount Program
These steps apply only to Office Professional Plus, Visio Professional, or
Project Professional.
Step 1: Start an Office app, like Word, Project, or Visio, depending on your
purchase.
Step 2: In the Sign in to set up Office window, select I don't want to
sign in or create an account (it's a small link at the bottom of the
window).
Step 3: Enter your Office product key, without hyphens. If you don't have
your key, see get your Workplace Discount Program product key.
Microsoft Store
Step 1: Go to [Link] and sign in (upper right-hand corner)
with the Microsoft account that you used to buy Office.
Step 2: After you sign in, select your name in the upper right-hand corner,
and then select Order History.
Step 3: Locate the Office one-time purchase or individual Office app, and
then select Install Office to view your product key (this doesn't actually
install Office).
Step 4: Select Install Office again in the window where the product key
appears.
Step 5: On the Hi. Let's get started page, follow the prompts to sign in
again and associate your product with your Microsoft account.
Microsoft 365 Business Standard
Step 1: Go to [Link]/get-started/setupkey
Step 2: Enter Office product key without hyphens, and then select Next.
Step 3: Follow the prompts to finish the redemption and setup process.
Having problems with your product key?
I can't find my product key
For help with finding your product key, select your version of Office below:
Office product keys
Microsoft Workplace Discount Program product keys
My product key isn't working
If your Office product key doesn't work, or has stopped working, you should
contact the seller and request a refund. If you bought a product key separate
from the software, it's very possible the product key was stolen or otherwise
fraudulently obtained, and subsequently blocked for use. Unfortunately,
there are many dishonest sellers who offer stolen, abused, or otherwise
unauthorized Microsoft product keys for sale. Sometimes these product keys
are printed on counterfeit labels or cards with a download link to Microsoft
software, and sometimes they're distributed with software media that is
unauthorized for resale, such as promotional media, original equipment
manufacturer reinstallation media, or other Microsoft program-specific
media.
Contact support
If you still need help with your product key, visit our Microsoft support
page for help.
Need more help?
Using product keys with Microsoft 365
Applies To
Your Microsoft account takes the place of your product key for many tasks,
such as activating Microsoft 365 and reinstalling Microsoft 365.
Common questions about Microsoft 365 product keys
Check the sections below to find out if you need a Microsoft 365 product key
and what to do with your key if you have one.
You just bought Microsoft 365
Where do I enter my new product key?
My new Windows PC came with Office but I can't find a product key
I bought a product key card but there's no key on it
You're using Microsoft 365
Office prompting me for a product key
Do I need a product key to reinstall Office?
Can I change my product key?
View your product key
Can I view my product key in Office?
Can I view my product key online?
Can I view my key in the Microsoft Store?
My product keys don't match
Get help with your product key
Can I buy a product key?
I lost or damaged my product key
My Office product key isn't working
Contact support about my product key
I just bought Microsoft 365. Where do I enter my product key?
If you bought a new, never used product key
If you have a new, never used product key, go
to [Link]/setup and follow the on-screen prompts.
Get help with [Link]/setup
Get help with product key errors
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If you bought Microsoft 365 through the Microsoft Store
If you bought Microsoft 365 through the Microsoft Store you can enter your
product key there.
1. Go to [Link]. In the upper right-hand corner,
select Sign in and enter the user ID and password you used to buy
Microsoft 365.
2. After you sign in, select your name in the upper right-hand corner, and
then select Order History .
3. Locate the Microsoft 365 one-time purchase or individual Microsoft 365
app, and then select Install Microsoft 365 to view your product key
(this doesn't actually install Microsoft 365).
4. Select Install Microsoft 365 again in the window where the product
key appears.
5. On the Hi. Let's get your Microsoft 365 page, follow the prompts to
associate your product key with your Microsoft account and start the
installation process.
If you bought Microsoft 365 through Microsoft Workplace Discount
Program
When you install Office Professional Plus, Visio Professional, or Project
Professional through your employer's Workplace Discount Program(formerly
known as Home Use Program) benefit, you enter your product key after you
install your product.
1. Start any Microsoft 365 app, such as Word, Visio, or Project, depending
on your purchase.
2. In the Sign in to set up Microsoft 365 screen, select I don't want
to sign in or create an account (it's a small link at the bottom of the
window).
3. Enter your Microsoft Workplace Discount Program product key to
activate Microsoft 365.
For help, see Get help installing Office through Microsoft Workplace Discount
Program
My new Windows PC came with Office but I can't find a product key
If you see a Let's get started screen with options to try, buy, or activate
Microsoft 365, this means that Microsoft 365 is installed on your new PC as a
1-month trial of Microsoft 365 Family. You won't receive a product key from
your PC manufacturer unless you paid for an Microsoft 365 product key card.
Instead, you can start a trial of Microsoft 365 Family, or buy Microsoft 365.
I thought this device included Microsoft 365
If you paid for a Microsoft 365 product to be included on your new Windows
PC, a digital product key is transmitted to your PC when you activate
Windows. You won't receive a printed product key. Instead, you'll see a
message similar to the following when you start Word (or any Microsoft 365
app).
Get help with activating an Office purchase or free offer on a new PC
I bought a product key card but there's no key on it
If you bought a Microsoft 365 product key card, you might need to carefully
scratch off a silver foil coating on the back of your product key card to reveal
your product key. If you damage the key while scratching off the foil coating,
see I lost or damaged my product key.
Tip: A product key card might also contain bar codes and other groups of
letters and numbers, but the product key will always be shown in the
format XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX .
Microsoft 365 is prompting me for a product key
Use your Microsoft account , not your product key, to install and activate
Office and individually purchased Microsoft 365 apps, such as Project, Visio,
Word, Excel, and Outlook.
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Sign in to install Microsoft 365
Bookmark the site below so you always know where to go to install Microsoft
365.
Microsoft account, Services & subscriptions page
Sign in to activate Microsoft3 65
If a Microsoft 365 app prompts you to activate, sign in with your Microsoft
account instead of a product key.
Use the right Microsoft account
Make sure you sign in with the Microsoft account that you used to buy
Microsoft 365.
Find the account you use with Microsoft 365
Note: If you bought a new, unused Microsoft 365 product key card to renew
a Microsoft 365 subscription or to buy your trial, you can enter that product
key if Office prompts you for it. You can also enter the product key
at [Link]/setup.
There are a few exceptions where you'll need to do something other than
sign in.
If you bought Office Professional Plus, Visio Professional, or Project
Professional through your employer's MicrosoftWorkplace Discount
Program benefit, you'll need your product key to install Office on a PC.
To locate your product key online, see Get your Workplace Discount
Program product key.
If you're using a volume license version of Office Professional Plus at
work, you'll need to contact your admin for a product key.
If you see a yellow or red banner in an Office app that
says SUBSCRIPTION EXPIRED, you must renew your Microsoft 365
subscription to keep using Office. For help, see Renew Microsoft 365 for
home.
If Office came pre-installed on your new device, and you see a yellow
or red banner in an Office app that says PRODUCT NOTICE Most of
the features of <app> have been disabled because it hasn't
been activated , you must start a new Microsoft 365 Family trial, sign
in with a Microsoft account that's associated with Office, or buy Office.
For help, see Activate Office.
If you bought Office Professional Plus online, see Can I buy a product
key? or, if your product key isn't working, see My Office product key
isn't working.
Do I need a product key to reinstall Office?
No, you don't. Just go to the Microsoft account, Services & subscriptions
page and sign in using the Microsoft account that you used to buy Office. We
can help if you forgot your Microsoft account or password.
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Note: You need a product key to reinstall Office Professional Plus, Visio
Professional, or Project Professional through the Microsoft Workplace
Discount Program (formerly known as Microsoft Home Use Program). For
help, see Get help installing Office through Microsoft Workplace Discount
Program.
Can I change my product key?
Yes, you can change the product key for Office Home & Business, Office
Home & Student, Office Professional, and individually purchased Office apps.
To learn how, see Change your Office product key
You can also switch your Office license if you buy a different version of Office.
For example, if you have Office Home & Business and decide to subscribe to
Microsoft 365, you can switch your existing install from Office Home &
Business to Microsoft 365. To learn how, see Switch your Office license.
Can I view my product key in Office?
No, you can't. For security reasons, the full product key isn't displayed within
Office.
Instead, for Microsoft 365, Office 2021 , Office 2019 and Office 2016, you can
view the Microsoft account that Office belongs to. This account takes the
place of your product key and can be used to reinstall Office from
the Microsoft account, Services & subscriptions page and to activate Office.
To view the Microsoft account that Office belongs to, open a document in
Word (or any Office app) and go to File > Account . Look for the email
address after Belongs to below the product name.
Can I view my product key online?
No, your product key isn't displayed online (see exception for Workplace
Discount Program below). You should sign in to your Microsoft account
dashboard using the Microsoft account that you used to buy and download
this version of Office.
You bought an older version of Office through Microsoft Workplace
Discount Program
If you bought an older version of Office Professional Plus, Visio Professional,
or Project Professional through your employer's Workplace Discount Program
benefit, you can view your product key online on your Order Details page.
For help, see Get your Workplace Discount Program product key.
Can I view my key in the Microsoft Store ?
If you bought Office Home & Student, Office Home & Business, Office
Professional, or individual Office apps from the Microsoft Store and you
haven't installed them yet, you can also view their product keys and install
them from the Microsoft Store.
Here's how to view your product key in the Microsoft Store:
1. Go to [Link]. In the upper right-hand corner,
select Sign in and enter the user ID and password you used to buy
Office.
2. After you sign in, select your name in the upper right-hand corner, and
then select Order History .
3. Locate the Office one-time purchase or individual Office app, and then
select Install Office to view your product key (this doesn't actually
install Office). Note that this product key won't match the product key
shown in the Microsoft account, Services & subscriptions page. This is
normal.
My product keys don't match
This is normal. The Office product key shown on the Microsoft account,
Services & subscriptions page will always be different than the product key
that's shown on a product key card or email receipt. They are two different
types of keys, even though they use the same format.
Can I buy a product key?
It depends on what you're trying to do.
To buy a new copy of Office, or start a new Microsoft 365 subscription,
you can buy an Office product key card from a retailer. You can redeem
your key at [Link] to set up your Microsoft
account and install Office. You can also buy a digital download directly
from the Microsoft Store at [Link]. You'll receive a
product key if you buy a one-time purchase Office or individual Office
apps, but you won't need or receive a product key for Microsoft 365 .
To renew your Microsoft 365 subscription, you can buy a Microsoft 365
product key card from a retailer and redeem the key
at [Link] You can also renew your
subscription online, without a product key,
at [Link]
365-subscription.
If Office is prompting you for a product key, and you want to buy a
product key to activate Office, it's better to uninstall your current
version of Office and then buy and install a new version of Office from
the Microsoft Store . This way you can be sure that Office will activate
successfully.
Click the button below to compare prices and options and to make your
purchase.
Buy or try Microsoft 365
If you're shopping for Office product keys elsewhere, we recommend that you
review our tips for safer shopping to make sure you're buying genuine
Microsoft software. Be sure to read the tip called Beware of Product Keys
Sold Separately if you want to buy a product key online. If you buy a
product key online and it doesn't work or stops working, see My Office
product key isn't working.
I lost or damaged my product key
If you damaged your product key, but have a valid proof of purchase,
Microsoft support may be able to replace your product key or provide other
options. Contact Microsoft support for assistance.
If you believe the product key has been lost, stolen, or misplaced and you
simply would like to buy a newer version of Office, you can click the button
below to compare prices and options and to make your purchase.
Buy or try Microsoft 365
If you're shopping for Office elsewhere, we recommend that you review
our tips for safer shopping to make sure you're buying genuine Microsoft
software. Be sure to read the tip called Beware of Product Keys Sold
Separately if you want to buy a product key online.
My Office product key isn't working
If you see an error message when you redeem your product key
at [Link]/setup, see Get help with product key errors on
[Link]/setup.
If your Office product key doesn't work, or has stopped working, you should
contact the seller and request a refund. If you bought a product key separate
from the software, it's very possible the product key was stolen or otherwise
fraudulently obtained, and subsequently blocked for use. Unfortunately,
there are many dishonest sellers who offer stolen, abused, or otherwise
unauthorized Microsoft product keys for sale. Sometimes these product keys
are printed on counterfeit labels or cards with a download link to Microsoft
software, and sometimes they're distributed with software media that is
unauthorized for resale, such as promotional media, original equipment
manufacturer reinstallation media, or other Microsoft program-specific
media.
Contact support about my product key
If you've followed the guidance in this article and still need help, visit
our Microsoft support page for assistance.
Need more help?
Want more options?