How to Sign In to Microsoft Office

Signing in to Microsoft Office allows you to access all of its features. This includes accessing documents remotely from different devices and services like OneDrive.

This guide shows you how to sign in using a desktop application (for Microsoft Office 2019 or Office 365) or Office Online.

Which Office accounts are available?

To sign in to Office, you must first have an Office account set up. If your school or organizations haven’t provided you with an account, you have multiple options:

Microsoft Office 2021 (paid)

This office option is sold as a one-time purchase. After purchasing, you can use the applications in the suite forever. However, there are no upgrade options, meaning you will have to pay the full price again if you plan to upgrade to the next major release.

2. Microsoft Office 365 (paid)

This is a subscription service made available by Microsoft, including up-to-date tools and features. You can choose to pay for your subscription monthly or yearly. You don’t need to be online to use Microsoft 365 after it is installed and activated on your devices. However, you will need internet access to install updates, manage your billing, and access documents stored on OneDrive.

3. Office for the Web / Office Online (free)

This is a free version of Office that you can use in a web browser. You do not need a subscription to log in, and it includes most of the Office applications you need. To use Office for the Web, you must first have a Microsoft account.

How to sign in to an Office application

1. Open any Office application (for example, Microsoft Word) and click Sign in in the top right corner.Note: if you see the name for your account, you’re already signed in.

   

2. In the pop-up window, type the email address and password you use with Office. If you don’t have a Microsoft Account, click on Create one! and follow the steps to create a new account. If you do not have an Office subscription, you will have to buy one to proceed.

   

You can also access the sign-in menu following these steps:

1. Click on the File tab.

   

2. Select Account on the left-hand side menu, then click on Sign In to enter your email address and password.

   

How to Sign in to Office for the Web

Office for the Web (also known as Office Offline) allows you to access Microsoft Office apps from your browser for free. Follow these steps to sign in to Office Online.

1. Open your browser and go to office.com
2. Click on Sign in if you already have a Microsoft account, or click on Sign up to create one for free.

   

3. Enter your email address and password.

   

4. You can now access all your MS Office apps from the menu on the left-hand side.