A product key is a 25-character code used to validate ownership of Microsoft software. For Microsoft 365 and most Office installs, a product key is usually not needed after purchase because Office is installed and activated by signing in with the Microsoft account that was used to buy it.
If Word is asking for a product key when using the math feature, the Office installation is likely not activated. In that case:
- Open Word and sign in with the Microsoft account that was used to purchase Microsoft 365 or Office.
- If Office is already associated with that account, install or reinstall it from the Services & subscriptions page: https://account.microsoft.com/services
- If a new, unused product key card was purchased, redeem it at https://www.microsoft365.com/setup.
- If the message says the key has already been used, that usually means the product was already redeemed and added to the Microsoft account. In that case, sign in with that account instead of entering the key again.
A product key is different from an activation code: the product key is used during installation, while an activation code is used after installation to activate the software.
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