
The Volume Licensing approach is best for those who run a business or need Windows 10 installed on multiple computers. The only difference is that a retail license key is transferable to a different PC whereas an OEM one is not. An OEM license is available at a comparatively lower price than the retail one. Out of these, the most common ones available to any home user are retail and OEM licenses. There are multiple Windows license types. The next best option that we recommend is purchasing a Windows 10 OEM license. Read also: How to use Android apps on Windows 10 Buy Windows 10 OEM License From Microsoft

All you would need to do after that is download the ISO file and create a bootable Windows USB. But this time, choose the “Create installation media” option. To get the free version of Windows 10, all you need to do is just download the Media Creation Tool from the Microsoft website and run it, just like before. Also, an “Activate Windows” watermark would constantly appear on the bottom right corner of the screen. The only difference between the two is that you won’t be able to personalize the Windows appearance through the free version. The Windows 10 free version works no different from its paid version and comes with all the features that the latter offers. It APPEARS from this person’s post that they were able to install and activate Windows 10 using a Windows 11 key.Another way to try out before buying a new license for Windows 10 is to use its free version. (although I suspect that these keys will just work directly in Windows 11, even if they’re officially 10 keys). Yes, you will likely be able to upgrade to Windows 11 for free at any point, but if you’re stocking up on keys it might be something to think about. Keep in mind that Windows 10 support ends in October 2025. Plus it gives you MUCH more control over the updating and “privacy” functionality (in quotes because yeah, no one really trusts Microsoft in either version). But does have some nice features if you’re at all techy, such as Bitlocker for drive encryption (so someone can’t yank out your hard drive and read your data), Hyper-V for virtualization and Remote Desktop. I’m a bit concerned because I am tempted to buy the max of 3 as I know I will use them in the future, but if the keys are at all dodgy I doubt I could get support down the road…įor a typical home user you likely don’t really need Pro.

I have a few projects I’ve been debating if I wanted to pay the $99 for a Pro upgrade, but this price makes it a no-brainer, as long as these really are legit… the cheapest I’ve ever seen a Pro upgrade is very, very rarely down to $89.99.
