Microsoft Lets Students Use Office 365 For Free Here Is How To Get It

Bonisiwe Shabane

-Oct 22, 2025, 2:14 PM

microsoft lets students use office 365 for free here is how to get it

Free alternatives may exist for Microsoft Office components, but sometimes they can’t stand in for the original. And as a student, the new cost of $100 per year for a Microsoft 365 Personal account is pretty expensive—but fortunately, you may not have to pay to use the software. Depending on where you go to school, you may qualify for a free or heavily discounted Microsoft 365 subscription. The student version gives you the same access to Office apps (including Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint), 1TB of OneDrive cloud storage, video editing software, and more. For many students, your school email address will be enough to check your eligibility—and you may not even need to go through that process. The community college in San Francisco (where PCWorld is located) offers a free Microsoft 365 subscription for all students.

Your school may have an agreement with Microsoft to provide Microsoft 365 for free. You can check in a few different ways: If you’re a teacher or student, you can use Microsoft 365 (formerly Office 365 and Microsoft Office) on a Mac or Windows PC for free through your educational institution. Microsoft 365 (formerly Office 365) is Microsoft’s suite of productivity apps, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Teams, and more. For eligible students and teachers, Microsoft provides access to these apps for free, both in the cloud and on your desktop. This is made possible through agreements with educational institutions worldwide.

Note: The transition from “Office 365” to “Microsoft 365” is complete for most product lines, so most references to Microsoft’s suite now use the Microsoft 365 branding. However, the Education Edition still refers to Office 365 for the desktop edition. Tip: Not all educational institutions are eligible. If your school doesn’t participate, you can still use Microsoft 365 online for free (more on that below). Microsoft Lets Students Use Office 365 for Free — Here’s How to Get It In today’s digital age, productivity tools have become an essential part of daily life, especially for students.

From writing essays and creating presentations to managing schedules and collaborating with peers, these tools help streamline academic life and foster skills that are invaluable beyond the classroom. Recognizing the importance of accessible technology for education, Microsoft offers a fantastic opportunity: free access to Office 365 for students. This comprehensive suite of applications, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and more, can make your academic journey smoother, more efficient, and more successful. If you’re wondering how to take advantage of this offer, this article will guide you through everything you need to know. We’ll explore what Office 365 for students includes, the benefits of using it, eligibility requirements, step-by-step instructions on how to get started, and tips on maximizing its use for your educational needs. Office 365, now known as Microsoft 365, is a cloud-based subscription service offering access to a suite of productivity and collaboration tools.

For students, Microsoft provides Office 365 Education, a free version tailored to help learners excel in their academic pursuits. Core Features of Office 365 for Students: Microsoft Office 365 can cost between $70-$150 per year, but you don't always have to pay these prices. Whether you're a student, nonprofit worker, or just looking to save money, there are numerous legitimate ways to access Office 365's powerful productivity suite without spending a dime. This comprehensive guide will walk you through 12 proven methods to get Office 365 free in 2025, helping you save hundreds of dollars while still accessing Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneDrive, and more. From educational discounts to free web versions, we'll explore every legitimate avenue to help you access Microsoft's premium productivity tools.

Let's dive into these money-saving strategies that can transform how you work, study, and manage your digital life. The most straightforward way to get Office 365 free is through Microsoft's Education program. Students, teachers, and faculty members at eligible educational institutions can access Office 365 Education for free, which includes the full desktop versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, and 1TB of OneDrive storage. Simply use your school email address to verify your eligibility. This program covers K-12 schools, colleges, universities, and homeschool associations worldwide, making it accessible to millions of students and educators. Microsoft offers completely free web-based versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote through Office.com.

While these versions have some limitations compared to desktop applications, they include most essential features for document creation, editing, and collaboration. You'll need a free Microsoft account and internet connection, but you'll get 5GB of OneDrive storage included. This option works perfectly for basic productivity tasks and real-time collaboration with others. Qualified nonprofit organizations can receive Office 365 Business Premium for free through Microsoft's Nonprofits program. This includes up to 10 licenses for staff members, providing access to desktop applications, email hosting, and advanced collaboration tools. Organizations must be registered nonprofits in good standing and meet Microsoft's eligibility criteria.

The program can save nonprofits over $1,500 annually while providing enterprise-grade productivity tools. Microsoft Office 365 is a popular productivity suite used worldwide in offices, schools, and homes. It includes Microsoft Word, Outlook, Excel, and PowerPoint. Although you can buy these apps individually, a subscription has its advantages. You’ll get the latest updates and access to new features. Do you want to take advantage of the full suite of Office 365 tools but don’t have the money to invest in a paid plan?

We’ve got good news for you. Microsoft makes it easy for students and educators to get Office 365 completely free under Microsoft Education. If you prefer a one-time purchase, there’s also Microsoft Office for Windows and Mac targeting students. It’s called Office Home and Student 2021, and it costs $150. This version requires no subscription, but it’s expensive. All you have to do to sign up for free Microsoft Office 365 as a student or a teacher is to enter your valid school email address on the official webpage and press the...

The email address you provide must be able to receive external emails. That’s because Microsoft will send you a verification code with which you’ll access your newly created Microsoft account. Microsoft will automatically check the eligibility of your school or university and grant access to Microsoft Office 365 tools such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, and Teams immediately. Did you know you can customize Google to filter out garbage? Take these steps for better search results, including adding my work at Lifehacker as a preferred source. There are a lot of productivity apps available today, but many still see Microsoft Office as the gold standard.

The problem is, unlike Google's suite of apps, Office is largely paywalled: While you can use the web apps for free, if you want to access these programs in full, you'll need to subscribe... Luckily for some of us, that's now changing—at least for the next year. As The Verge reports, Microsoft is now offering 12 months of Microsoft 365 Personal for free to college students. This plan, which typically costs either $99.99 per year or $9.99 per month, comes with Microsoft Office apps like Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, and Outlook across platforms like PC, Mac, iOS, and Android. In addition to the Office apps themselves, Microsoft 365 Personal also comes with Microsoft Copilot access in the desktop version of these apps, as well as Designer, and AI-powered image generator and editor. Microsoft has been pushing AI integration in its apps for over two years now, and whether or not you find these tools useful, they are available as part of this free plan.

It's important to note, however, that Copilot in Excel requires AutoSave enabled, which saves all files to OneDrive, while Copilot use in Outlook only works with @outlook.com, @hotmail.com, @live.com, or @msn.com accounts. Microsoft is also throwing in 1TB of cloud storage as part of this plan, as well as Microsoft Defender support. You'll need to download the Defender app to your devices of choice. A Microsoft 365 subscription includes Microsoft Word for writing, PowerPoint for creating presentations, Outlook for email and OneDrive for cloud storage. Typically a subscription isn't cheap, but there are ways you can access these tools for pennies or for free. A paid Microsoft 365 membership starts at $2 a month or $20 a year for Microsoft 365 Basic or it can cost up to $130 a year for Microsoft 365 Family.

While a few bucks a month may not sound too bad, subscription services can add up. Thankfully, you can get Microsoft 365 for free if you're a student or teacher. You can also use Microsoft 365 for free using the online-only versions of apps like Word, or take advantage of a free trial. Whether you're a student, teacher, budget-conscious shopper or all of the above, here's how you can get Microsoft 365 for free. Microsoft Excel can be a great tool for crunching data sets, tracking grades and other applications in the classroom, and it's free for teachers or students. If you're a student, teacher or faculty member with an active school email address, then you're probably eligible to get access to Office 365 for free through Microsoft.

An Office 365 Education subscription provides free access to the web-based versions of Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote, plus other classroom tools. Read our disclosure page to find out how can you help MSPoweruser sustain the editorial team Read more Fix Windows errors with Fortect:Fortect can repair common computer errors by scanning your entire system for damaged or missing OS files and replacing them with the original, working versions. Optimize your PC in 3 simple steps: Besides that, it helps you clean up junk files, fix stability problems, and get rid of annoying programs and malware traces. Microsoft Office, with its suite of productivity tools like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, is essential for many students, professionals, and home users.

However, the cost of a subscription can be a barrier. Fortunately, there are several legitimate ways to access Microsoft Office for free, whether it’s through trial periods, educational institutions, or online versions. This guide will walk you through each method, ensuring you can get the tools you need without breaking the bank. This article provides a comprehensive, step-by-step approach to accessing Microsoft Office without paying a dime. We’ll cover everything from leveraging free online versions to exploring trial offers and educational opportunities. By the end, you’ll have a clear understanding of your options and how to take advantage of them.

Microsoft Lets Students Use Office 365 For Free Here Is How To Get It

People Also Search

Free Alternatives May Exist For Microsoft Office Components, But Sometimes

Your School May Have An Agreement With Microsoft To Provide

Note: The Transition From “Office 365” To “Microsoft 365” Is

From Writing Essays And Creating Presentations To Managing Schedules And

For Students, Microsoft Provides Office 365 Education, A Free Version