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How to Fix: Office Says Your Product Key Is for a Version That Is Not Installed

3 min read

If you see an error like: “This product key is for Microsoft Office Professional Plus 2024, which is not installed.” it usually means that an older Office license is still stored on your computer and is blocking the activation of your new product key.

This problem can affect all Office versions, but it is especially common with Office 2024. In some cases, Office 2024 may even be shown as Office 2021 after installation. This is normally caused by leftover license data from an earlier Office installation.

Note: Even if Office shows the wrong version under Product Information, the installed apps may still be correct. Removing old license data usually fixes the version display and allows activation to complete properly.

1. Uninstall Older Office Versions #

  • First, uninstall any previous or incorrect Office versions that may still be installed on your computer.
Instructions for uninstallation
  • After uninstalling, restart your computer and try activating Office again.

2. Check Which Office Version Is Active #

  • Open Word and go to Account in the lower-left corner.
  • Make sure you are signed out of your Microsoft account. If you are signed in, click Sign out and confirm.
  • Under Product Information, check which Office version is currently active.
  • If it shows Microsoft 365 or another Office version instead of the one you purchased, an old license is still interfering.

3. Clear the License Cache #

  • Before using advanced steps, try removing the old license cache.
  • Close all Office apps and open File Explorer. Then go to:
C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Office\Licenses
  • If the folder is hidden, enable Hidden items in File Explorer, or press Windows key + R, paste the path, and press Enter.
  • Delete all files inside the Licenses folder, but do not delete the folder itself.
  • Then open Word again. If prompted, do not sign in with a Microsoft account. Instead, choose Enter a product key and enter your Office key.
  • Restart Word and check File > Account to see whether the correct Office version is now displayed.

4. Remove Old Product Keys #

  • If the issue remains, old product keys may still be stored in the system.
  • Close all Office programs and open Command Prompt as Administrator.
  • Run the following commands one line at a time. If the first path does not work, use the second one.
cd "%ProgramFiles%\Microsoft Office\Office16"
cscript ospp.vbs /dstatus
  • or
cd "%ProgramFiles(x86)%\Microsoft Office\Office16"
cscript ospp.vbs /dstatus
  • Look through the listed keys and identify any product keys that do not belong to your current Office version.
  • Remove the incorrect key with:
cscript ospp.vbs /unpkey:XXXXX
  • Replace XXXXX with the last 5 characters of the key you want to remove.

5. Activate Office Again #

  • Open Word and activate Office again using your correct product key.
  • If you are asked to sign in, choose Enter a product key instead. Avoid signing in with a Microsoft 365 account during this process, since that can cause Office to reactivate the wrong license.

Tip: If you previously used Microsoft 365, always sign out of your Microsoft account in Office before activating a perpetual Office license. Otherwise, Office may switch back to the Microsoft 365 license automatically.

After old license data has been removed, Office should show the correct version under Product Information, and activation should work normally.

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