Find a microsoft key

Microsoft only keeps a record of product keys if you purchased from the Microsoft online store. You can find out if you purchased from Microsoft in your Microsoft account Order history. If you upgraded to Windows 10 for free from Windows 7 or Windows 8. If you bought Windows 10 or Windows 11 Pro upgrade in the Microsoft Store app, you'll receive a digital license instead of a product key in the confirmation email that was sent to confirm the purchase.

That email address MSA will contain the digital license. You can use the digital license for activation. Your product key is available through the web portal for your program. For more information, see Volume Activation for Windows A product key is usually required when uninstalling or reinstalling Windows 7 or Windows 8.

Generally, if you bought a physical copy of Windows, the product key should be on a label or card inside the box that Windows came in. If Windows came preinstalled on your PC, the product key should appear on a sticker on your device. To ensure your product key is genuine, see How to tell your software is genuine and How to tell your hardware is genuine.

For info about how to tell if your copy of Windows is genuine Microsoft software, see the How to tell page. For more Windows 11 download info, see Download Windows For more Windows 10 download info, see Download Windows If you need installation media to install or reinstall Windows, see Create installation media for Windows to learn how to create your own installation media using either a USB flash drive or a DVD.

If you need more help with activation, see Activate Windows. If all else fails, you will need to contact Microsoft to obtain a replacement key. Basically, you have a digital entitlement if you upgraded your PC from Windows 7 or 8. You will also have a digital entitlement if you paid for a Windows 10 upgrade via the Windows Store, or did a fresh install of Windows 10 and then paid for it via the Windows Store.

If your PC has a digital entitlement, Microsoft keeps a record of your right to run Windows 10 on its servers. If you ever need to do a fresh install from a USB drive, for example, you will not have to activate your PC. Instead, after the reinstall Windows will activate seamlessly in the background within a few hours or at worst a few days.

You cannot use a third-party tool to find product keys for applications not linked to your personal Microsoft account this applies to users of Microsoft After launching the software, go to the left column and select the Office application for which you want to find the key. Instead, you purchase a one-year license that is stored in your Microsoft account. However, you can install the new versions of Office locally without a subscription by purchasing a one-time product key.

In this case, the product keys are then stored in the registry as usual. Other similar tools are able to find the serial number for newer versions of Office, as long as these versions are used locally and not as part of a Microsoft subscription.

This article introduces three ways of checking your Windows version in just a few seconds: using a keyboard shortcut, via the Control Panel, or using the Windows Command Prompt CMD. Sometimes, reinstalling Windows is unavoidable, because of performance reasons or because your computer has been attacked by malware. If Windows needs to be reinstalled, you will need to enter your product key. This guide will show you how to find a Windows 7 product key within a minute.

Missing your Windows 8 product key? There are multiple options to find your Windows license product key — either by using an external utility program or a Windows tool.