Office — phone activation (RETAIL licenses)
Activate Office through your Microsoft account and our portal. Despite the name, you don't have to call anyone — it all happens on your computer. We'll walk you through it step by step, from the key to a fully activated Office.
Why does Office activate by phone?
You bought a genuine RETAIL Microsoft license at a great price — it's a secondary license that has already had more than one owner (legally transferred to you, and perfectly fine within the EU) and it's fully functional. That's exactly why it activates by phone through our portal rather than automatically online. It's not a defect or a "lesser" license — it's completely normal, and you'll sort it out in just a few minutes with the steps below.
First, uninstall any older versions of Office
Before installing, uninstall all previous versions of Office (including any pre-installed Office 365). You'll find a guide here (Microsoft Support).
Step-by-step guide
Follow the order. Most steps come with a screenshot.
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Copy your license key
After paying on cd-keys.online, you'll receive an email with a 25-character key (e.g. TQ7YM-*****-*****-*****-D3YCT). Select it and press Ctrl + C.
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Register the key at office.com/setup
Open office.com/setup and sign in to your Microsoft account. In the Enter product key box, paste the key (Ctrl + V) and click Next.
fig. 1 – Registering the key to your account -
Download and install Office
After registering, click Download (we recommend the 64-bit version). Run the installer and wait for the installation to finish.
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Show your Installation ID (IID)
Open Word and go to File → Account → Activate Product. In the wizard, choose I want to activate the software by telephone and click Next. Your Installation ID (IID) will appear — 9 groups of numbers. Leave the window open.
fig. 2 – The Installation ID in Office -
Verify yourself on our activation portal
Open cd-keys.online/phone-activation. Enter your email (the same one you used for the order) and your license key, then click Continue.
fig. 3 – Verifying your license -
Enter the IID and get your Confirmation ID (CID)
Type the 9 groups of numbers from Office (from step 4) into the fields provided and click Get Confirmation ID (CID).
fig. 4 – Entering the numbers from your screen -
Finish activation in Office
The portal will show you a Confirmation ID. Type (or copy) it into the empty fields A to H in the Office activation window and click Next.
fig. 5 – Entering the confirmation into Office at last
Done — Office is activated!
If the portal reports an error, first check that you typed the numbers from step 4 correctly (a typo is the most common cause).
Risk-free — instant key replacement
If your key happens to be blocked during activation, our portal will issue you a new one instantly and automatically — right there on the spot, no waiting. There's nothing for you to deal with; you simply carry on.
Frequently asked questions
What does "secondary license" mean?
It's a genuine Microsoft RETAIL license that has already had more than one owner and was legally transferred to you (which is perfectly fine within the EU). It's fully functional — the only difference from a brand-new one is that it activates by phone instead of online. That's why you get it at a significantly better price.
Do I really have to make a phone call for "phone" activation?
No. Despite the name, everything happens on your computer and our portal. No call is needed.
The portal didn't give me a Confirmation ID (CID)
Check that you typed all 9 groups of the Installation ID correctly (with no typos). If it still won't work, email us at [email protected].
My key won't register or reports an error
Make sure you've uninstalled older versions of Office and that you've entered the correct key from our email. If the key happens to be blocked, the portal will issue you a new one instantly — no waiting.