Office Activation Guide (redeem.microsoft.com)

Use this activation guide to redeem your Microsoft Office, Access, Project, Visio, Outlook, or other standalone Office app key.

  1. Sign in to your Microsoft account here: https://login.live.com
    Or create a new Microsoft account here: https://signup.live.com/signup

    (Must be a personal Microsoft account, not an organization account).

  2. Go to the redemption page here: https://redeem.microsoft.com/
    Enter your 25-character product key, make sure the account it will be added to is the correct one, click next.

    Possible errors:
    This code has already been redeemed, skip to step 4 of this guide.
    You are not logged in. Please login before redeeming a token, click here for troubleshooting steps.

  3. Check the product you will be granted is as expected, click confirm.

    Important:
    There are no refunds after clicking confirm because the key will be used and the license permanently bound to your Microsoft account, this cannot be undone by us or Microsoft.

  4. Go to the subscriptions tab here: https://account.microsoft.com/services
    You will see the product you just redeemed listed (along with any others on your account).
    Click the install link on the right-hand side to download the installer.

  5. Choose the language and version you wish to install then click the install button.

  6. Before installing your new Office program you should uninstall any old versions on your computer. Old versions often cause conflicts with a newer version being installed, Microsoft 365 will try to override your new install (they want you to subscribe).

    Uninstalling your old Office program will not delete your files (Word, Excel, etc.), as they are stored separately from the software. For extra security, consider backing up your files.

    Here are links to the Microsoft uninstall guides for Windows and Mac:
    Uninstalling Office from a Windows PC
    Uninstalling Office from a Mac

  7. Double-click on the Office installer that was downloaded to your computer (most likely in your downloads folder), and follow the on-screen instructions.

  8. Your installation is complete when you see the message “You’re all set! Office is installed now”.

  9. Upon opening an Office App for the first time you will be asked to sign in to your Microsoft account.
    Sign in to the same account you used at the start of this guide, as that is the account the license is on.