We have the full Office licence terms on our web site. Transferable to another computer: Yes, you can uninstall from one computer and reinstall the same software on another computer in the same household. Licences: three – can be installed on any three computers (desktop or portable) in the same household for non-commercial use by members of that household. The OEM version of the Home and Student edition is limited to a single computer, as noted above. The Home and Student edition has different rules than other retail offerings.
Transferable to another computer: Yes, you can uninstall from one computer and reinstall the same software on another computer.
Licences: two – one for a desktop computer and another for a portable computer. (any retail purchased copy of Microsoft Office except the Home and Student edition) If you COA doesn’t have that ‘OEM’ phrase on it, then it’ll be a retail copy of Microsoft Office with the more liberal transfer and multi-use rights. Most apply to Windows but under “Pre-installed Non-Windows Software COAs” you can see the sticker that accompanies OEM versions of Office, it is clearly marked ‘OEM software’.Įxample of current Microsoft Office Certificate of Authenticity for OEM software since June 2009. Microsoft has a web page showing the various authenticity stickers. You should be able to tell the difference by looking at the ‘Certificate of Authenticity’ (COA) that comes with OEM or retail packages. If you buy a copy of Office from a large computer maker but separately from a computer purchase, it will be a retail licence.
Smaller outlets can get a standard retail copy of Office and install it for you. While the large computer makers (Dell, HP etc) supply OEM licenses with their pre-installed copies of Office, many smaller stores do not. Not all pre-installed copies of Office are necessarily ‘OEM’ copies with the more restricted use and non-transfer rules. However, as with many things about buying Microsoft Office, things aren’t as simple as they seem or Microsoft pretends they are. You might have bought it when you ordered the computer. OEM copies of Office come supplied with new computers only. You can’t transfer the software to another computer. With an OEM copy of Office you only get the right to install the software on the computer you purchased with it. This includes the Home and Student edition. In this article we’ll try to help you work it out.Īny copy of Office sold pre-installed on a new computer with an ‘OEM’ certificate of authenticity.
OEM copies of Office give you much less than a retail edition with the same name.Įven worse, it’s sometimes hard to tell the difference between an OEM copy and a retail package. Home and Student, Home and Business, Professional etc.Īt first glance an OEM copy of Office looks cheaper than any retail edition you buy in a store but you’re not comparing the same products. Or you can get a retail package also known as ‘Full Package Product’ or FPP.īoth OEM and FPP come in all the various editions of Office with their combinations of software. There are ‘OEM’ licenses for Office which come with a new computer. It can be hard to know which type of Microsoft Office you purchased – and it really matters to what you pay and what you get.įor retail customers there are two different types of Microsoft Office you can buy and that difference makes hundreds of dollars difference to your cost of buying Office.