How to Find Your Microsoft Office Product Key

Are you having trouble reinstalling your Microsoft Office? In all likelihood, you’ve forgotten your product activation key. It’s difficult to find, so you might be panicking trying to remember the lost activation code. There are a few options to retrieve this information, regardless of whether you’re using a Windows PC or MacBook.

In this article, we’ll go over how you can find your product key on your PC or Mac so that you can successfully access all of your Microsoft software.

How to Find Your Microsoft Office Product Key on a Windows PC

Depending on which version of Windows you’re using, the steps for accessing the key are a bit different.

How to Find the Product Key on Windows 7 and Earlier Versions

With Windows 7 or an earlier version of the operating system, you don’t need additional software to find the product key.

Purchasing Windows from the Microsoft Store

If you’ve bought the Windows license through the Microsoft Store, then the product key copy is saved in your Microsoft Account. This means that Microsoft has sent you the key in a confirmation email. Search through your inbox to find it. If you don’t see it, go through the junk folder as well.

Here’s what to do if the email is nowhere in sight:

1. Log into the Microsoft Store and go into Downloads.
   
2. Select Product Keys and open the Subscriptions page.
   
3. Tap the Digital Content tab to view all your purchases and product keys.

You should see the product key among the items on the list.

Purchasing Windows from a Retailer

A licensed retail store can also sell Windows products. They come in a box with a small business card containing the product key. If you’ve saved the card, flip it over to see the key.

Also, you might have taken a picture of the key as an online backup. If you suspect that you saved an image, go through your gallery until you find the picture.

Alternatively, when you get your PC from a white box vendor, the product key can be found on the computer’s chassis sticker. Although the sticker can rub off over time, you can check your device to see if the key is still visible.

How to Find the Product Key on Windows 10 and Windows 11

With newer software like Windows 10 and Windows 11, you can use command prompts or third-party software to recover your key.

How to Find Product Key Using Windows PowerShell or Command Prompt

If you’re looking for the Microsoft Office product key on Windows 10 or Windows 11, you can use Windows PowerShell, the intended replacement for Command Prompt, or the trusty Command Prompt. This action will pull up the key from the motherboard.

Here’s how to find the product key using Windows PowerShell on Windows 10/11:

1. Simultaneously press down on the Windows + X keys.
   
2. Select Windows PowerShell (Admin) or Command Prompt (Admin).
   
3. When the window pops up, type in:
   wmic path SoftwareLicensingService get OA3xOriginalProductKey
   
4. You can also use:
   (Get-WmiObject -query 'select * from SoftwareLicensingService').OA3xOriginalProductKey
   

Your product key will appear in the window when the command is executed.

Here’s how to find the product key using the command prompt on Windows 10/11:

1. Simultaneously press the Windows + S keys to open Windows search.
   
2. Type “cmd” and select Run as administrator from the search results.
   
3. Enter the following in the pop-up command window:
   wmic path SoftwareLicensingService get OA3xOriginalProductKey
   

Your key will appear onscreen. You can take a picture of it or store it online for safekeeping.

How to Find Your Microsoft Product Key in the Windows Registry File

If you don’t want to use a third-party app to recover the product key, there’s an alternate way to do it. It’s possible to access the key in the Windows Registry File, but you’ll need the correct command.

To pull up the key from the Registry File:

1. Go to the Search menu and type “regedit” and select it.
   
2. Now, find and open the following key:
   ComputerHKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREMicrosoftWindows NTCurrentVersionSoftwareProtectionPlatform
   
3. The window will generate a list of files. Go to the BackupProductKeyDefault key.
   

The product key is recorded next to the BackupProductKeyDefault key in the Data column

How to Find Your Product Key with Microsoft Support

When you’re in a hurry or feel like you need a bit of extra guidance, you can try contacting the Microsoft Support team. Here’s how to ask for assistance:

1. Simultaneously press the Windows + I keys to enter Settings and type “Activation settings” in the search bar.
   
2. Tap Get help on the right part of the desktop.
   
3. Choose your reason and select Contact Support.
   
4. Tap your product type and click Confirm.
   
5. Choose Provide your phone number and a support agent will call you.
   

After you enter your personal information, the support team will reach out to you.

How to Find Your Microsoft Office Product Key on a Mac

There are also different ways to unlock Microsoft Office on your MacBook.

First, try using the one-time PIN. To do so:

1. Locate the packaging or card that came with your Microsoft Office.
   
2. When you find the PIN, visit this Microsoft website and type it in.
   

This method will recover your key only if you’ve never used the PIN.

The product key could be saved on your account page if you’ve used it before. To locate it on your page:

1. Sign in to your Microsoft account.
   
2. Tap View product key and then locate it on screen.
   

When you download Office from an online store, you should receive the product key in your inbox. When searching your email for the receipt, make sure to go through the junk folder too.

If you’ve bought a DVD copy of Office, check the inside of the DVD case. You should see the product key on a yellow sticker.

How to Find Your Microsoft Office Product Key in the Home Use Program

Your Mac could be using the Home Use Program version of Office. In that case, you’ll have to get a product code instead of a product key.

Here’s how to find the code:

1. Enter the Home Use Program.
2. Type your country or region and work email address.
3. Select Don’t Know Your Program Code?
4. Tap Verify Email.

These steps will allow you to retrieve your product code.

How to Find Your Microsoft Office Product Key using Third-Party Software

Using additional software can sometimes be complicated. But tools like ProduKey make finding your key a relatively straightforward process.

Find Your Product Key with ProduKey

If you’re not tech-savvy, handling software and hardware can be daunting. Luckily, many excellent third-party apps will do the hard work for you. A good option for retrieving your Microsoft product key is NiriSoft’s ProduKey. It’s malware-free, so you don’t have to worry about the app stealing your data and information.

Some antivirus protection might still flag it and issue a warning because it comes from a third-party manufacturer.

Here’s how to use ProduKey:

1. Download ProduKey.
   
2. Unzip the folder.
   
3. Run the app.
   

The app will then generate your product key in a separate window.

You can also use this app to extract the key from a dead PC that refuses to boot at all:

1. Connect the hard drive to a functioning computer.
   
2. Launch ProduKey and select File.
   
3. Tap Select Source, then click Load the product keys from external Windows directory.
   

This process will retrieve the key stored on the dead PC.

Microsoft Office Product Key Located

For many, much of our personal and professional lives revolve around accessing our Microsoft products at any time. When you upgrade your software or have to reinstall it, getting locked out of your Office Suite can be frustrating, especially if you’ve forgotten the product key.

The good news is that you have all the tools necessary to bypass this problem. Whether you’re a PC or Mac user, this article has hopefully helped you learn how to find your product key anytime and anywhere.

When was the last time you had to search for your Microsoft Office key? How did you restore it? Tell us in the comment section.