There are a variety of situations in which knowing where to find your Windows 11 product key is critical. Perhaps your PC is performing slowly, and you’d like to install Windows 11 from scratch.
Alternatively, you may require the license to be transferred to a new machine. Whatever the cause, here’s how to locate your Windows 11 product key.
Find Your Windows 11 Product Key
Purchase your digital product key from a trusted retailer such as Microsoft, Best Buy, or Amazon. If you go with a different source, it’s possible that it won’t be authentic, and you’ll have trouble activating it or losing functionality over time.
Command Prompt
Search “cmd” on your Window search bar.
Copy and paste the following path into the Command Prompt and hit Enter:
wmic path SoftwareLicensingService get OA3xOriginalProductKey
The original product key that came with your computer will appear.
Check Emails and Receipt
Another way to find your Windows 11 product key is to look through Microsoft or Best Buy emails or receipts.
You can find your key in the “Orders” or “Purchases” section of the online store if you bought Windows 11 from either firm.
If you purchased your digital license through Amazon, your key should appear in your Amazon games and software library.
Check the Retail Package with Disc
You should be able to discover the key in the product box if Microsoft starts selling physical copies of their new OS on disc.
For example, the Windows 10 product key was printed on the back of a business card included in the overall packaging.
Use a Third-Party Utility
You can also use a third-party program such as ShowKeyPlus to locate your Windows 11 product key.
When you launch the program, it will display your product key as well as additional license information.
Once you’ve obtained your product key, make sure to keep it in a safe and easily accessible spot.
Microsoft gives you a one-time transfer option.
Find Sticker on Computer Chassis
You can also check for your key on a sticker placed on the computer chassis by some OEMs.
It’s usually located at the bottom of your laptop or on the rear of your desktop computer’s chassis.
Just create a backup of your key (take a picture of it) and you should be fine if something goes wrong and you need to reinstall Windows 11.
Create a VBS File to Find Product Key
If you’re a more sophisticated user, you can make a VBS file by copying and pasting the script below into Notepad.
It’s worth noting that there’s a lot to copy and paste. Just make sure you get every last bit of code:
Set WshShell = CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
MsgBox ConvertToKey(WshShell.RegRead("HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\DigitalProductId"))
Function ConvertToKey(Key)
Const KeyOffset = 52
i = 28
Chars = "BCDFGHJKMPQRTVWXY2346789"
Do
Cur = 0
x = 14
Do
Cur = Cur * 256
Cur = Key(x + KeyOffset) + Cur
Key(x + KeyOffset) = (Cur \ 24) And 255
Cur = Cur Mod 24
x = x -1
Loop While x >= 0
i = i -1
KeyOutput = Mid(Chars, Cur + 1, 1) & KeyOutput
If (((29 - i) Mod 6) = 0) And (i <> -1) Then
i = i -1
KeyOutput = "-" & KeyOutput
End If
Loop While i >= 0
ConvertToKey = KeyOutput
End Function
Click on “Save As” then select All Files.
Use the .VBS format for it to work.
Double-click the VBS file and your product key will pop up.
