Most Windows users probably know whether they are using Windows 7, Windows 10, or another version of the Microsoft operating system. However, some aren’t aware of the version number of their Office program. There are considerable compatibility issues between the different versions of Microsoft Office, which makes it difficult to exchange documents. For example, projects are sometimes formatted differently across individual Word versions, and Excel macros or Word templates often cannot be exchanged between Office versions.
To find out which Windows version you have installed, simply use the key combination Win + Pause.
For the smooth exchange of documents, but also when errors occur, it’s important to know which Office version you are using in order to determine the cause and find a solution.
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Matching emailSSL certificate24/7/365 supportIf you’re a current user of a Microsoft Office program, you can find out the Office version you are using in just a few clicks. This method applies to Office versions 2007 and later.
The Office serial number, which is also commonly referred to as the product key, won’t be discoverable using this method. To find your Office product key, special additional tools from third-party providers are needed.
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OneNote has been part of the Microsoft suite since Office 2010. The version number can be found in the program. In principle, however, it is the same as the version number of the other Office components.
The online version of Microsoft Office that you use directly in the browser without installation is automatically updated to the latest version. Nevertheless, you can find the number of the Office version you are currently using if there are problems or unexpected changes to the document.
The first Microsoft Office version for Windows appeared in the fall of 1990 and contained Word for Windows 1.1, Excel for Windows 2.0, and PowerPoint for Windows 2.0. Previously, the programs were only available separately. After several versions, Office 3.0 was the first Microsoft product to be released on CD-ROM in August 1992. There has never been an Office version 2. Since Office 95, internally referred to as Office 7, all individual programs included in the package contain the same version number.
Microsoft launched the modern interface with menu bars as of Office 2007. Up to and including Office 2003 there was a classic menu bar in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, as known from other Windows programs.
If you want to find the version number of an older version of Microsoft Office, click on the question mark in the menu bar and select the “About” option in the menu.
In many Office alternatives with classic menus, you’ll find the version number in the same way as described above!
In each document, Microsoft Office stores the version number of the Office program that was used to create and save the document. Based on this number, Office recognizes whether the document can be opened with a certain version and whether possibly incompatible macros or templates are included.
However, this version number is not displayed directly in the properties of the document. Luckily, there’s a trick to find it:
If an Office program like Word can’t be launched, because it maybe doesn’t work anymore, you can look up the Office version directly in the program file. This method also works for local networks, to find out what version of Office is installed on different computer.
In the properties of an EXE file from Microsoft Office and in the about window in Office Online you can find the build numbers that Microsoft uses internally as version numbers. The first block of digits of these numbers, for example “16...”, points to the Office version. Up to and including Microsoft Office 4.3 from 1994, the first digits of the build number corresponded to the Office version.
Since the launch of Windows 95, Microsoft uses year numbers instead of version numbers for marketing reasons. The table shows which build number belongs to which Office version. For some versions, a macOS version of Microsoft Office appeared a little later with the same build number as the Windows version released shortly before.
| Office version | Operating system | Build number |
|---|---|---|
| Office 95 | Windows | 7 |
| Office 97 | Windows | 8 |
| Office 98 | Mac OS | 8 |
| Office 2000 | Windows | 9 |
| Office 2001 | Mac OS | 9 |
| Office XP | Windows | 10 |
| Office for Mac OS X | Mac OS X | 10 |
| Office 2003 | Windows | 11 |
| Office 2004 | Mac OS X | 11 |
| Office 2007 | Windows | 12 |
| Office 2008 | Mac OS X | 12 |
| Office 2010 | Windows | 14 |
| Office 2011 | Mac OS X | 14 |
| Office 2013 | Windows | 15 |
| Office 2016 | Windows/Mac OS X | 16 |
| Office 2019 | Windows/Mac OS X | 16 |
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Highly secureShared accessAvailable anywhereThe build number 13 never existed with Microsoft Office – an old developer tradition, since programs with the version number 13 were often full of bugs and were rarely met with user approval.
Are you a Windows user, but aren’t sure what version of the operating system you have installed on your PC? This article introduces three ways of checking your Windows version in just a few seconds: using a keyboard shortcut, via the Control Panel, or using the Windows Command Prompt (CMD).
You can find your current Linux version and distribution in a few easy steps. This information is crucial when it comes to updates, tools, and troubleshooting. Keep reading to find out how to check your Linux version and distribution.
Knowing which Ubuntu version you’re running is helpful for different things. You can use this information to check whether programs are compatible with your system. Or you can include the version number in troubleshooting searches. It’s thus of crucial importance to know how to check your Ubuntu version. Keep reading to find out how to do so in a few simple clicks.
In Windows, product keys are well-hidden and are not displayed directly in the application. You can use special tools to find the Office product key before reinstalling your Office software suite. You can recover the product key in all versions of Office that store the key on your computer. These include the popular 2010 and 2016 versions.
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