Stuck in a loop

Question

I purchased and have been consistently using MS Office Home and Student September 21, 2021.

Two days ago while working on a Word document, I lost all ability to write/edit etc. The prompt at the top of the screen to 'Activate' account.

When I sign in to my account in the pop-up window, it says 'License Not Found'.

I have checked several times that I am signing in with my one and only microsoft account number. I am stuck in a constant loop of deleting and reinstalling the program.

I have run all of the trouble shooting programs. I have followed all the recoding links. I do not have the apps double downloaded. I logged in an out of my account several times. I have added an alias email. I am never prompted with a 'Welcome' window.

Nothing is working and I am not re-purchasing the 2019 version or the newer 2021 and I am not paying a subscription to MicroSoft 365 when I have already purchased Office Home and Student 2019.

If someone is having the same trouble the last few days and has figured out how to fix, please let me know!

Thanks

Answer 1

Hi Madison B,

Thank you for reaching out. My name is Leo, a user just like you. I'd be happy to help you with your concern.

It seems to be a known issue with users who have a one-time purchased license. For this, I recommend trying the steps below to troubleshoot the issue.

First, you will need to use the license removal tool to remove the license of your old Office product. You can follow the steps provided on this link. Link: https://support.microsoft.com/office/b032c0f6-a431-4dad-83a9-6b727c03b193

After you have completely removed the license, try activating using a product key (if available) or signing in to your Microsoft account in Office again. In case the issue still persists, follow the steps below to completely uninstall Office.

Follow the steps on this link to uninstall Office, you must select the correct version of Mac you are using to proceed. Link: https://support.microsoft.com/office/eefa1199-5b58-43af-8a3d-b73dc1a8cae3

After you have completely removed Office, follow the steps below to install the correct version you may also try the download and installation link provided from your Microsoft account under the Order History:

1. Go to www.office.com and select Sign In if you are not already signed in.
2. Sign in with the account you associated with this version of Microsoft 365 or Office. This account can be a Microsoft account or a work or school account. Make sure you're using the account you used when you purchased Office.
3. Once signed in, from the Microsoft 365 home page, select Install Office to start the download.
4. When the download is complete, open the Finder, go to Downloads, and double-click the Microsoft Office installer.pkg file (the name may vary slightly).
5. On the first installation screen, select Continue to start the installation process.
6. Review the software license agreement, then click Continue.
7. Select Accept to accept the terms of the software license agreement.
8. Choose how you want to install Microsoft 365 and click Continue.
9. Review the disk space requirements or change the installation location, and then click Install.
10. Enter your Mac login password if prompted, then click Install Software. (This is the password you use to log into your Mac.)
11. The software will begin installing. Click Close when the installation is complete.

To activate:

1. Click the Launchpad icon in the Dock to display all your apps.
2. Click the Microsoft Word icon (or another Microsoft 365 or Office icon) in Launchpad.
3. The News window opens automatically when you start Word. Click Get started to start the activation.

After you completed all the steps, kindly try to access again your Microsoft Office and check if the issue was resolved.

For more detailed steps, you can refer to the link provided below:

https://support.microsoft.com/office/4414eaaf-0478-48be-9c42-23adc4716658#InstallSteps=Install_on_a_Mac

In case the suggested steps didn't work, I recommend trying the steps suggested by another community user. Other users who have tried this solution found it to work on their devices. Here's the link:

https://answers.microsoft.com/thread/59981c07-8a3e-418e-b644-69082a2bbadd

Your understanding and patience will be highly appreciated. I hope I provided a helpful information regarding your concern! Let me know if you have any further questions. Be safe always!

Best Regards,

Leo