Unable to Activate/Use Microsoft 365 on MacBook Air

Question

Unable to Activate/Use Microsoft 365 on MacBook Air

Terri L 0

Bought a new MacBook Air and transferred everything to it from the old MacBook, but have been unable to update Word documents and Excel spreadsheets on the new laptop. Updated Word and Excel in the App Store, but still cannot edit in either application. Any advice or suggestions would be appreciated.

0 comments

2 answers

Your answer

Answer 1

Thank you for letting me know.

He should not lose his Word documents or Excel files by removing Word and Excel from the Applications folder. Those documents are separate files. Still, I recommend backing up the important files first, just to be safe.

If you haven't already, I’d suggest is to uninstall any existing Office apps on your Mac to avoid conflict:

Here are the steps: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/how-to-remove-office-license-files-on-a-mac-b032c0f6-a431-4dad-83a9-6b727c03b193

Then, to reinstall Microsoft Office:

Go to https://account.microsoft.com/services
Sign in using the same Microsoft account linked to your license.
Find your Microsoft 365 Subscription and click the "Install".
That will download the installer for the Office apps, just run it and follow the steps.

If anything’s unclear or the "Install" option still doesn’t show, feel free to let me know. I’ll be happy to walk you through it!

If all is resolved, feel free to mark the answer for this thread. Otherwise, please let me know if there is anything else I can help you with.

Answer 2

John Jefferson Doyon 77,635 Independent Advisor

Hi, I'm John! I will help you with this.

Can you please confirm where you bought the Microsoft 365 subscription? Was it from Microsoft, Apple App Store, your school/work, or a third-party seller?

Also, please sign in here and check if the subscription appears under your Microsoft account: https://account.microsoft.com/services Does it show as active?

Can you also share a little background on what happens when you try to edit? For example, does it say View Only, Activate Office, Subscription expired, or something else?

Terri L 0 Reputation points

2026-06-29T19:35:58.81+00:00

We updated the Microsoft apps using the Apple App Store. the older MacBook had Microsoft 2011 on it and it was transferred to the new laptop. It's my Dad's issue. When he tries to log in to Microsoft, he gets an Action Required: We detected a one-time purchase license. This license can only be used with Microsoft 365 apps downloaded directly from Microsoft365.com. When he clicks on Learn more, it's telling him to Trash the Microsoft apps. He worried he will lose all his Word documents and Excel spreadsheets if he does that.

When he opens an existing document, he has no editing capabilities.
Terri L 0 Reputation points

2026-06-29T20:50:50.3333333+00:00

Thank you for the information. He and I had seen these instructions before, but it was not clear if he would lose his documents and spreadsheets in the process. I hope he will be able to follow these instructions. Unfortunately, he is in Texas and I am in Virginia. He is also 90 years old.
John Jefferson Doyon 77,635 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-06-29T21:00:47.2933333+00:00

I understand the concern, especially since he is doing this remotely.

Removing Word, Excel, or the Microsoft apps from the Applications folder should not delete his documents or spreadsheets. The apps and the files are separate. His files should stay where they are, such as Documents, Desktop, OneDrive, or iCloud Drive.

To be extra safe, he can first copy a few important Word and Excel files to a USB drive, external drive, iCloud Drive, or another folder before removing the apps.

One suggestion: do not empty the Trash right away. Move the Microsoft apps to Trash, install Office again from https://account.microsoft.com/services then test Word and Excel. Once editing works and the files open normally, then the Trash can be emptied later.

Since he is 90 and in another state, it may help if you guide him over a video call or phone call and have him share what he sees on the screen step by step.