Office 365 licence no longer works

Question

Office 365 licence no longer works

Tonya Kragelj 5

I am running Monterey on a Macbook 14 in Pro 2021. I can no longer get into excel or word. I have a licence that does not expire until Feb. Your email to me said Monterey should be ok for the OS. I can not update excel or word. There is no check for updates under help. I get an error when I try to sign into my account while in excel or word. I get error code 0x0 when I try to login to my account while in excel. If I try restore purchase it says this apple id does not have a paid subscription.

You chatbot did say that Monterey is not sufficient. So which is it? Will upgrading the OS allow me to activate my subscription?

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2 answers

Your answer

Answer 1

John Jefferson Doyon 89,735 Independent Advisor

Hi, @Tonya Kragelj

Monterey is no longer supported for the latest Microsoft 365 updates. Microsoft says Office version 16.88 was the last version supported on macOS Monterey.

However, Microsoft’s current guidance for the 0x0 / "License Not Found" issue says macOS Monterey 12 or later can still be used for the required Office update. https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/support/known-issues/unknown-error-0x0-license-not-found-error-microsoft365-macos

Yes, upgrading macOS may help, but first check whether your subscription is still active at:

https://account.microsoft.com/services

If it shows active until February, please let me know:

Was Microsoft 365 purchased directly from Microsoft or through Apple?
What Office version is installed? In Excel, go to Excel > About Microsoft Excel.

The "Restore Purchase" message only applies if the subscription was purchased through Apple.

Click "Add comment" to let me know.

Thanks!

Tonya Kragelj 5 Reputation points

2026-09-23T16:19:30.25+00:00

Thanks. I purchased through apple and it is still active. I'm running office 16.69.1

I guess I'm going to have to update the OS.

I'm just annoyed the email microsoft sent said Monterey would be fine and the website even says Ensure that you are running at least macOS version 12 or higher.
John Jefferson Doyon 89,735 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-09-23T18:09:12.2366667+00:00

Thanks for confirming. Since your subscription is through Apple and still active, the subscription itself does not appear to be the issue.

Your Office version 16.69.1 is also quite old.

Did you already see @EmilyS_726 reply above? She provided another option if you want to stay on Monterey: uninstall the current Office installation and install version 16.88, which was the last Office version supported on Monterey.

If you prefer to keep receiving current Office updates, then upgrading macOS (if available) would be the better option.

Thanks!
Tonya Kragelj 5 Reputation points

2026-10-01T18:08:23.3866667+00:00

Thanks. I purchased through apple and it is still active. I can sign in on the website fine. I'm currently running office 16.69.1

I just updated the OS and installed Golden Gate 27.0.1

I followed your link here: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/support/known-issues/unknown-error-0x0-license-not-found-error-microsoft365-macos

and ran the microsoft autoupdate app which said all apps are up to date.

Now I'm getting Your purchase was successful but we were unable to associate it with your Microsoft account when I try to activate or sign in

Answer 2

For macOS Monterey 12, Microsoft 365 is no longer supported for current updates.

The August 2024 release, version 16.88, was the final Office build supporting Monterey. An existing installation may continue to work, but it will not receive security updates, fixes, or new features. Current Microsoft 365 and Office 2024 installations require macOS Sonoma 14 or later.

You will need to uninstall it. And install the downgraded version (16.88) here: https://officecdn.microsoft.com/pr/C1297A47-86C4-4C1F-97FA-950631F94777/MacAutoupdate/Microsoft_365_and_Office_16.88.24081116_Installer.pkg?apid=ets