How to get Windows cheap (or even for free)
Posted: Fri May 27, 2022 6:50 pm
Yes, you can get a properly activated version of Windows 10 for free.
Windows licenses are expensive—almost painfully so. Shelling out $139 for Windows 10 Home or $200 for Windows 10 Pro feels rough when Linux is free, since that much cash is easily a third of a budget PC build. Even if you want to run Windows 11, you’re best off getting a Windows 10 license on sale first, then upgrading to Windows 11 (and trying these 10 awesome Windows features that you probably don’t use, but should).
Deal alert: The PCWorld Software Store frequently sells Windows 10 editions at reduced prices. Make sure to check our Home and Pro listings before settling for full price—at the time of publication, we were selling them for $50 and $70, respectively.
But with less developer support for Linux, Windows 10 is an inescapable necessity for most of us. What’s not a given is paying full retail.
Yes, it’s possible to snag a discount on Windows 10. The amount you’ll save depends on how much hassle you can tolerate—as well as your circumstances. If you’re lucky, you could technically get Windows 10 for free. Legitimately for free, since installing Windows 10 without ever activating it doesn’t count as getting a full, sanctioned copy of Windows.
Here’s how, in several different ways.
If you have an old Windows 7 or Windows 8 PC lying around, you may still be able to reuse its key to activate Windows 10.
When Microsoft first launched Windows 10 back in 2015, it offered Windows 7 and Windows 8 users a truly free, no-strings upgrade to the new operating system. The promotion was only available for one year—presumably to accelerate Windows 10 adoption rates—and expired in July 2016.
But even though Microsoft officially ended this program three years ago, it still has yet to completely shut everything down. The activation servers have been allowing Windows 7 and 8 keys on some Windows 10 installs.
The Windows 7 or Windows 8 product keys that commonly work for this method are the retail and OEM varieties. Only sporadic success has been reported for volume license keys (i.e., enterprise or educational licenses) working with this loophole.
While there’s no exact science for what works, the following guidelines take into account various data points floating around in articles, forums, and Reddit. First off, you’re limited to using keys for a specific version of Windows 7 or 8 with the equivalent in Windows 10. If you have a Windows 7 or 8 Home license, that will only work for Windows 10 Home. Windows 7 or 8 Pro only work for Windows 10 Pro.
If using a Windows 7 or 8 key works for activation, a digital license will be issued to you.
An additional rule of thumb is that you may need a retail product key if you’re doing a clean install of Windows 10 on a new computer. OEM product keys should work if you’re doing an upgrade or clean install of Windows 10 on the machine the Windows 7 or 8 license is tied to.
If you don’t have your license key easily accessible, you can find it by using a program like Magical Jelly Bean Product KeyFinder. (Need help getting it to work? Use our step-by-step guide.)
Once you have that on hand, you’ll enter it one of two ways: Either when prompted during the installation process if you’re doing a clean install, or through the “Change product key” option in the Activation section of Windows 10’s settings.
If the product key is recognized, you’ll be issued a digital license that associates your machine with the key, so you should be good to go for the future if this method ever expires, as Microsoft had previously said it would.
Easiest discount: An OEM license
Price: $110 (Windows 10 Home), $150 (Windows 10 Pro)
Our next suggestion is a method that’s available to everyone and has the least amount of hassle: purchasing an OEM license.
License types are different than operating system versions. They dictate what you can do with the software, while OS versions are distinguished by the features available. Multiple Windows license types exist, but the two commonly available to a home user are the retail and OEM varieties.
When you walk into a store or pop over to Microsoft’s website, handing over that $139 for Windows 10 Home (or $200 for Windows 10 Pro) gets you the retail license. If you visit an online retailer like Amazon or Newegg, you can find both retail and OEM licenses for sale. You can usually spot an OEM license by its price, which tends to run about $110 for a Windows 10 Home license and $150 for a Windows 10 Pro license.
All the features of the operating system version are the same for both license types. The difference is that with a retail license, you can transfer the license key to a different PC later on.
You can’t do that with an OEM license. In exchange for a lower price, you get to use the license key on only one PC, period. If you build a system but roll a new one four years later, you can’t transfer the license to the new machine.
Also, if the hardware used to identify your system fails—namely, the motherboard—Microsoft’s registration servers won’t recognize your license as valid after you replace the dead part. Microsoft has historically been kind about such situations, however; you can usually call to reactivate the license after replacing a fried mobo. But it is an extra hassle.
For further savings, you’ll have to wait for the rare sale or Black Friday, when you can get an OEM license in the neighborhood of $85 (Windows 10 Home) to $120 (Windows 10 Pro).
- 1.jpg (79.86 KiB) Viewed 1664 times
Deal alert: The PCWorld Software Store frequently sells Windows 10 editions at reduced prices. Make sure to check our Home and Pro listings before settling for full price—at the time of publication, we were selling them for $50 and $70, respectively.
But with less developer support for Linux, Windows 10 is an inescapable necessity for most of us. What’s not a given is paying full retail.
Yes, it’s possible to snag a discount on Windows 10. The amount you’ll save depends on how much hassle you can tolerate—as well as your circumstances. If you’re lucky, you could technically get Windows 10 for free. Legitimately for free, since installing Windows 10 without ever activating it doesn’t count as getting a full, sanctioned copy of Windows.
Here’s how, in several different ways.
- 2.jpg (110.46 KiB) Viewed 1664 times
When Microsoft first launched Windows 10 back in 2015, it offered Windows 7 and Windows 8 users a truly free, no-strings upgrade to the new operating system. The promotion was only available for one year—presumably to accelerate Windows 10 adoption rates—and expired in July 2016.
But even though Microsoft officially ended this program three years ago, it still has yet to completely shut everything down. The activation servers have been allowing Windows 7 and 8 keys on some Windows 10 installs.
The Windows 7 or Windows 8 product keys that commonly work for this method are the retail and OEM varieties. Only sporadic success has been reported for volume license keys (i.e., enterprise or educational licenses) working with this loophole.
While there’s no exact science for what works, the following guidelines take into account various data points floating around in articles, forums, and Reddit. First off, you’re limited to using keys for a specific version of Windows 7 or 8 with the equivalent in Windows 10. If you have a Windows 7 or 8 Home license, that will only work for Windows 10 Home. Windows 7 or 8 Pro only work for Windows 10 Pro.
- 3.jpg (63.97 KiB) Viewed 1664 times
An additional rule of thumb is that you may need a retail product key if you’re doing a clean install of Windows 10 on a new computer. OEM product keys should work if you’re doing an upgrade or clean install of Windows 10 on the machine the Windows 7 or 8 license is tied to.
If you don’t have your license key easily accessible, you can find it by using a program like Magical Jelly Bean Product KeyFinder. (Need help getting it to work? Use our step-by-step guide.)
Once you have that on hand, you’ll enter it one of two ways: Either when prompted during the installation process if you’re doing a clean install, or through the “Change product key” option in the Activation section of Windows 10’s settings.
If the product key is recognized, you’ll be issued a digital license that associates your machine with the key, so you should be good to go for the future if this method ever expires, as Microsoft had previously said it would.
Easiest discount: An OEM license
- 4.jpg (121.48 KiB) Viewed 1664 times
Our next suggestion is a method that’s available to everyone and has the least amount of hassle: purchasing an OEM license.
License types are different than operating system versions. They dictate what you can do with the software, while OS versions are distinguished by the features available. Multiple Windows license types exist, but the two commonly available to a home user are the retail and OEM varieties.
When you walk into a store or pop over to Microsoft’s website, handing over that $139 for Windows 10 Home (or $200 for Windows 10 Pro) gets you the retail license. If you visit an online retailer like Amazon or Newegg, you can find both retail and OEM licenses for sale. You can usually spot an OEM license by its price, which tends to run about $110 for a Windows 10 Home license and $150 for a Windows 10 Pro license.
All the features of the operating system version are the same for both license types. The difference is that with a retail license, you can transfer the license key to a different PC later on.
- 5.jpg (129.19 KiB) Viewed 1664 times
Also, if the hardware used to identify your system fails—namely, the motherboard—Microsoft’s registration servers won’t recognize your license as valid after you replace the dead part. Microsoft has historically been kind about such situations, however; you can usually call to reactivate the license after replacing a fried mobo. But it is an extra hassle.
For further savings, you’ll have to wait for the rare sale or Black Friday, when you can get an OEM license in the neighborhood of $85 (Windows 10 Home) to $120 (Windows 10 Pro).