Microsoft Office offers a powerful suite of productivity tools that will enhance your productivity big time, but where do you download Microsoft Office from, and how do you install it on a Mac?
Wouldn’t it be great to have someone hold your hand as you download and install Microsoft Office? Together, we will walk you through this step-by-step guide, complete with 21 screenshots, showing you exactly where to download Microsoft Office from, and how to install it on your Mac.
The one thing about the Mac is that it is consistent. For the most part, you install software on the Mac today like you did 10 years ago. Believe it or not, the hardest part about installing Microsoft Office for the Mac, is actually finding where to download it from Microsoft’s website. Not to worry, I’ll walk you through the entire process. Let’s get started!Content
1) Prerequisites to Installing Microsoft Office
Microsoft will allow you to obtain a license by way of a subscription or by purchasing a one-time purchase of an “Office Home” or “Student 2019” version for use on one computer. If you need to make a purchase, you can do so by visiting Microsoft’s website now, or discover all that is included with the purchase of a Microsoft Office license.
If you would simply like to try out Microsoft Office, be sure to read the article, “Is there a Free Version of Microsoft Office for Mac” where I show you how you can get Microsoft Office and use it free for 30 days. You also may want to read, “MS Home vs. Business: What’s the Difference?“
Whether or not you purchase Microsoft now, or get the trial version, you will need to create a Microsoft account and download the Office.
2) Download Microsoft Office
The first thing that you will need to do is to login to your Microsoft Account by visiting https://login.live.com from the Mac computer that you intend on installing Microsoft Office. When you visit the login page, you will see the following screen.
After you enter your Microsoft username, (the e-mail address, phone number, or Skype username), you use to sign into your Microsoft account, you will be asked to enter your password.
Once logged in, you will be brought to your Microsoft Account page where you can manage your subscriptions, family members who have access to this account [if you purchased the family member subscription], the devices that you installed Microsoft Office on, and your billing details.
We are only concerned with downloading Office for your Mac, so take a look at the left side of your screen and you should see the following image under SUBSCRIPTIONS.
Simply click on the GET STARTED link under the SUBSCRIPTIONS section on this page.
The SERVICES AND SUBSCRIPTIONS page should now appear. Look for the INSTALL OFFICE APPS ON YOUR PC OR MAC line. To the right, click the INSTALL link.
You will then be brought to the following screen. If you have an older version of MacOS, click on the “DOWNLOAD OFFICE FOR VERSIONS 10.10 OR 10.11“, otherwise, click on the blue INSTALL button.
After clicking on the blue INSTALL button (or the “DOWNLOAD OFFICE FOR VERSIONS 10.10 OR 10.11” link), your download will start immediately.
Introduction
Once the download completes, you will find the Microsoft Office Installer .pkg file in your DOWNLOADS folder. If you double-click on that file, you will then see the installer screen as shown below. Click CONTINUE.
License Agreement
You will then need to agree to the License agreement by clicking CONTINUE
A drop-down pop-up will appear on screen, and you will have to click I AGREE to the license agreement.
Choose Where to Install Office
On the next screen that appears, select INSTALL FOR ALL USERS OF THIS COMPUTER or INSTALL FOR ME ONLY (this will be grayed out if there are no other user accounts on your Mac).
Additionally, you will need to click INSTALL ON A SPECIFIC DISK . . . (see image above). When you do, you will see the following screen so that you can choose where you will install Microsoft Office.
Simply click on the disk that you wish to install Microsoft Office on, and then click CONTINUE.
Installation Type
You now have to choose the type of installation. The STANDARD INSTALLATION will install all of Microsoft Office.
If you click the CUSTOMIZE button, you can select exactly which Microsoft Office programs you want to install.
If you only want to install certain Office applications, uncheck the box next to the application(s) that you do not wish to install.
Note that the disk space required is approximately 8.8 GB. Also, if you are using an older version of MacOS, you can only install Microsoft OneDrive by downloading the app from within the App Store on your Mac. Once you have confirmed which Office applications (if not all of them), you wish to install, you can click the INSTALL button.
Installing Microsoft Office
You will now be asked to enter the Administrator credentials. This will be the password you use to install software on your Mac. Note that this password is NOT the password to your Microsoft account.
The installation process will now begin by writing files to your hard drive.
The installation process could take anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes. It all depends on how much RAM your computer has, and if your Mac has a mechanical hard drive, (for older Macs), or an SSD drive, which is what you will find on all newer models.
Toward the end of the installation process, it may seem like your computer has frozen or is “hanging”, but it’s not. It is just installing the Package Scripts. Give it all the time it needs to install, and try to be patient, you are almost done 🙂
Summary
Congratulations! You have successfully installed Microsoft Office on your Mac!
Immediately after you see “THE INSTALLATION WAS SUCCESSFUL” screen, the MICROSOFT AUTO-UDPATE dialog box will appear, as shown below.
In a nutshell, Microsoft is notifying you that they will “collect required diagnostic data to keep Microsoft auto-update secure, up-to-date and performing as expected on the device it is installed on“. There is no option to opt out of this, though you can click the LEARN MORE button to read more about what type of data they collect and why they collect it. The bottom line is that you are required to click OK if you are going to use their software.
Now that your software has been installed, you can access any of the Microsoft Office applications my clicking the LAUNCHPAD icon from your Dock.
If you want easy access to any one of the Microsoft Office applications (or all of them), you can simply drag and drop their respective icon(s) to the Dock.
Once you first launch any one of the newly installed Microsoft Office products, you will be presented with the following screen, asking you to SIGN IN to your Microsoft Account. The reason for this is so that Microsoft can verify your active license. It also allows any and all changes to automatically be saved to any Microsoft Office document in real time.
Click the SIGN IN button to sign into your Microsoft account.
You will then be asked for your Microsoft login credentials. Simply enter the e-mail, phone number, or Skype username you used to create your Microsoft account to sign in. Alternately, if you do not have an active license, you can click CREATE ACCOUNT to sign up for a subscription based account.
Click NEXT.
After you have entered your Microsoft login credentials, Microsoft Office will communicate with the Microsoft servers to verify that you have an active license. Upon verification, the Office application in question will then open making it available for use.
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Microsoft Office has been around for more than 34 years. It is a very mature product that has been the industry standard for more than three decades. Not only does Microsoft make it easy to download and install on a Mac, they even offer a 30 day free trial after-which you can purchase a subscription for you or your family at a very affordable price.
Tim Chesonis
Tim has been helping people with computers needs for several years, and he loves to help people succeed. He brings a wealth of wisdom and insight from an entrepreneur's perspective and enjoys freelance writing. In fact, when he's not writing an article, you might find him binge-watching Suits or formatting his computer . . . again, just for fun. To learn more about Tim, click here.25 Basic Computer Tips for Windows!
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