How to restore Publisher from Office Pro Plus 2016 license

Restore Publisher by reinstalling the licensed Office Professional Plus 2016 package from its original license source; the product key alone does not provide a separate Publisher installer, and installing the full suite may require removing Microsoft 365 first.

1. Locate the Office 2016 installation entitlement

Choose the route matching how Office Professional Plus 2016 was obtained:

• Previously redeemed retail purchase: Sign in to the Microsoft account dashboard with the account used when the key was redeemed. Open Office apps, locate Office 2016, and select Install. A redeemed key is linked to that account and normally is not entered again during reinstallation.^1^
• Key never redeemed: Go to https://office.com/setup, sign in, and enter the Office 2016 key to associate the license with that account.^1^
• Purchased through an employer’s Home Use Program/Workplace Discount Program: Use the Workplace Discount Program order-history process with the original work address. If no order email arrives, check Services & subscriptions using the associated personal Microsoft account.^2^
• Organization volume license: Obtain the Office Professional Plus 2016 installation media and activation method from the organization’s IT/licensing administrator. Microsoft notes that volume-license installations can use a different installation process.^1^

2. Check whether it can coexist with Microsoft 365

In Word or Excel, open File → Account → Product Information:

• Update Options shown: The installation uses Click-to-Run.
• Update Options absent: It uses Windows Installer (MSI).

Microsoft 365 and Office 2016 both use internal version 16.0. Microsoft does not support installing two version-16 products that use different installation technologies, and overlapping Click-to-Run Office suites also have coexistence restrictions. All retained products must additionally have the same 32-bit or 64-bit architecture.^3^

Because Office Professional Plus includes applications that overlap your Microsoft 365 suite, the safest supported path is:

1. Back up Outlook data and any Office customizations.
2. Open Settings → Apps → Installed apps and uninstall Microsoft 365.
3. Restart Windows.
4. Run the Office Professional Plus 2016 installer obtained in step 1.
5. Open Publisher and accept the license terms. If the Activation Wizard appears, complete its prompts.
6. Open File → Account and verify that Product Information identifies the Office 2016 license.

This restores the entire Office 2016 suite, not Publisher alone. Reinstall Microsoft 365 afterward only if your particular licensing media and installation technologies form a supported combination; otherwise, one suite can replace or conflict with the other.

If Office 2016 is already installed but uses the wrong license

Try switching the installed Office license instead of reinstalling:

1. Open an Office application.
2. Select File → Account → Switch License.
3. Choose Use a different account → Enter product key instead.
4. Enter the Office 2016 key.
5. Select Install this product instead, close all Office applications, and allow Office to update.^4^

This changes the licensing of the installed Office product; it is not a method for adding only Publisher to Microsoft 365.

Support status

Office Professional Plus 2016 support ended on October 14, 2025, so it no longer receives support or security updates.^5^ Microsoft states that a perpetual Publisher license can still be installed and used after Publisher leaves Microsoft 365 in October 2026, but the application will be unsupported.^6^

References

1. Office 2016 for Mac
2. Install or reinstall Office or Microsoft 365 through Microsoft Workplace Discount Program | Microsoft Support
3. Supported scenarios for installing different versions of Office, Project, and Visio on the same computer
4. Office 2016
5. Office suites for enterprise, business, education, and government | Microsoft Support
6. Microsoft Publisher will no longer be supported after October 2026 | Microsoft Support