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Microsoft 365 License

Patty Cidone-Williamson 0 Reputation points
2025-07-18T15:26:53.2166667+00:00

I have a Microsoft 365 license that now costs $129/year through a third party. This is on a site that was my husband's who passed away 4.5 years ago. I am trying to reduce a lot of these accounts and want to understand how this works. I have the current 3rd party 365 downloaded on 3 devices (out of 5).

If I cancel this and purchase through Microsoft on my account how does this work? How complicated? Do I have to uninstall what is currently on these devices and then reinstall from the new license. All devices have WIndows. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Microsoft 365 and Office | Subscription, account, billing | For home | Windows
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  1. Alex_T 565 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2025-07-27T15:36:17.7+00:00

    Hi Patty,

    Thanks for the update.

    Regarding the “Sharing with 0 of 5 people” message — that’s totally normal. It refers to family sharing, which allows you to share your Microsoft 365 subscription with up to 5 other people using their own Microsoft accounts. It doesn’t reflect the devices where Office is installed or activated.

    To confirm that your desktop is properly activated under your new subscription, you can:

    1. Go to https://account.microsoft.com/services
    2. Under your Microsoft 365 subscription, click “Install” or “Devices” to see which devices are currently using your license.

    If everything looks good there, you can go ahead and repeat the same sign-out/sign-in process on your laptop and your daughter’s laptop. No need to reinstall anything — just switch the account in the Office apps like you did on your desktop.

    Let me know if you run into anything else!

    Best regards,

    Alex

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  1. Alex_T 565 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator
    2025-07-18T20:01:52.34+00:00

    Hello Patty,

    Thank you for reaching out here in the Microsoft Q&A.

    First, please accept my sincere condolences for your loss. I realize that you're trying to manage a Microsoft 365 subscription that was in your late husband's name, and I understand how you feel wanting to simplify things by moving it to your own account. I can assure you the process is generally not complicated, and I will guide you through how it works.

    To answer your main question: No, you typically do not have to uninstall and reinstall the Office applications. The license is tied to the Microsoft account you sign in with, not the software installation itself.

    Here is the recommended process to switch from the third-party license to a new one purchased directly from Microsoft:

    1. Purchase Your New Subscription: Using your own Microsoft account, go to the official Microsoft 365 website and purchase the subscription that best fits your needs. This ensures you have an active license under your name before the old one is cancelled, so you don't lose access.
    2. Cancel the Old Third-Party Subscription: You will need to contact the third-party company where the current $129/year subscription was purchased. Follow their specific process to cancel the subscription and stop any future automatic payments.
    3. Switch the Account on Your Devices: On each of your 3 devices, you will just need to switch the account logged into the Office apps: Step 1: Open any Office application, such as Word or Excel > Click on File > select Account. Step 2: Under User Information > Click Sign out. Step 3: After signing out, click Sign in and use your own Microsoft account credentials (the one you used to buy the new subscription).

    Once you sign in with your account, Office will detect the new license and activate itself. You may need to restart the Office application. This process will switch the activation from the old license to your new one without needing to reinstall anything.

    Please let us know if these steps help.

    Best Regards,

    Alex | Microsoft Q&A Support Specialist

     

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  2. Patty Cidone-Williamson 0 Reputation points
    2025-07-27T14:23:40.48+00:00

    Hi Alex,

    I waited until today (Sunday, 27 July) as my daughter is on the old subscription of my husband and didn't want to mess anything up for her while she was on travel.

    I followed all your instructions and after purchasing, I switched my account (#3 above). Interestingly, when I did this I noticed the user showed me (Patty Cidone Williamson) before I signed out and showed the same when I signed back in.

    I went to My Subscriptions (it shows the Microsoft 356) and Selected "Manage" but it shows:

    "Manage Sharing" Sharing with 0 of 5 people. So it gives me the impression that it's not recognizing the one on my desktop where I logged out and logged in on. I will wait to hear back from you before proceeding with my laptop and my daughter's laptop.

    Any information you can provide would be very helpful.

    Take care, Patty Cidone

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  3. Patty Cidone-Williamson 0 Reputation points
    2025-08-11T23:42:32.86+00:00

    Alex,

    I meant to respond to you last week and got sidetracked. Yes, your answer was spot-on. I appreciated your step-by-step response, and it worked wonderfully.

    Thanks for taking the time to respond and follow up. It was a pleasure.

    Take care, Patty

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