Office Activation Guide (setup.office.com)

How to activate, download and install your new Office product using a product key.

  1. Sign in or create Microsoft account

    Microsoft account

    Go to setup.office.com, sign in using your existing Microsoft account, or create a new one.

  2. Enter your key

    Enter product key

    Check the account shown after “Signed in as” is the one you want the product linked to, it cannot be changed afterwards.

    Enter your 25 character CD key (shown on your order page), click next. 

  3. Confirm and redeem the key

    Confirm activation

    Check the product listed after “Product key confirmed” matches the product you purchased.

    Select Confirm to agree to the Microsoft Services Agreement. Microsoft will immediately provide you with full access to your software after you complete this redemption. There are no refunds past this point due to the key being permanently linked to your Microsoft account.

  4. Download

    Download microsoft office

    Click the download now button and follow the on-screen instructions.

  5. Uninstall existing Office suites

    Before installing your new Office suite you should fully uninstall any old Office suites on your computer. Old Office suites are known to cause conflicts with a new installation, so it is best to remove them at this stage and avoid

    Links to the Microsoft uninstall guides:

    Uninstall Office on Windows PC
    Uninstall Office on Mac

  6. Install Office

    Installing office

    Run the Office installer file that was downloaded to your computer (most likely in your downloads folder) and follow the on-screen instructions.

    If you get an error message saying “Sorry it looks like you’re on a slow connection…”, Office is taking a really long time to install, or it appears to hang during the install, you may want to cancel the installation and start it again.

  7. Install complete

    Office installed

    Your install is finished when you see “You’re all set! Office is installed now”, an animation sometimes plays showing you where to find the Office applications.

  8. Activation wizard

    Office activation wizard

    This only applies to Office 2016 Suites or older.

    Upon opening an Office App for the first time you will be asked to activate your product with the Office Activation Wizard.

    Select “I want to activate the software over the Internet”, and then select next. Follow the prompts to complete the activation.

    If the internet activation fails, try the “I want to activate the software by telephone” and then select next. Follow the prompts to complete the activation.