What to try if you can't install or activate Office for Mac

Can’t activate Office after installation.

1. Check to make sure your internet is working on the Mac you’re trying to install on. You can do this by opening your internet browser and going to www.microsoft.com. If the page loads, your internet connection is working.
2. Reset your credentials:
   1. Open Spotlight by selecting the magnifying glass at the top right of your desktop.
   2. Search for and open Keychain.
   3. Type in Office and then delete the data license file.
   4. Download and run this script.

Activated but still prompted to activate.

You’ve activated but you’re still being asked to activate, or you keep seeing messages for “Activate Office to Create and Edit” when you’ve already activated:

1. Quit the app. For example, if you’re using Word, you’ll go to the upper left corner of your screen and click Word > Quit Word.
2. Restart any Office app and the message should be gone.
3. If this is a constant issue, reset your credentials:
   • Open Spotlight by selecting the magnifying glass at the top right of your desktop.
   • Search for and open Keychain.
   • Type in Office and then delete the data license file.
   • Run the license removal tool

Download and run the license removal tool

1. Download the license removal tool.

2. Open the .pkg file from your Mac’s Downloads folder.

Note: If you get an “unidentified developer” error, try opening the file by holding Control + clicking the file > Open.

3. Select Continue and follow the prompts in the setup wizard.

4. When you’re ready to complete the license removal, select Install. You may need to enter your Mac’s local admin account password.

After the tool successfully removes licenses, select Close.

5. Now open any Office app and sign in to activate with the email account associated with your Microsoft 365 for Mac license. If you’re troubleshooting an issue, you may need to reinstall Office before signing in.

After you’ve successfully activated, restart your computer and then you’re good to go!

Note: If your account has both a Microsoft 365 for Mac license and a one-time purchase associated with it, you’ll be prompted to choose which license you want to activate with. We recommend always choosing Microsoft 365 for Mac if available.

6. Uninstall the License Removal Tool by dragging the Microsoft_Office_License_Removal file from Finder > Downloads to Trash.