Microsoft account and accessing on a new computer/tablet

Question

Microsoft account and accessing on a new computer/tablet

Tracy Kinnebrew 0

Hi there,

I have been on Microsoft for several years and purchased a new Hp laptop in which I signed up for the Microsoft Office for $12.50 per month some two and a half years ago.

Now, I have purchased a new tablet, and I have been trying to open my Microsoft account on my new tablet to get in my files, but it says I need to sign up for an account.

So, the problem is that for the last two and a half years I have been paying $12.50 per month but under my account it says that I have a "free" account...but I have credit card statements with auto payments.

I don't want to open a new account on my tablet, but it appears the issue is and has been that my Microsoft account was showing as "free" when I've been paying for it all along. I purchased the new tablet for work use and really need to get on my new tablet.

Can you help me or tell me who to speak with concerning this matter.

Regards,

TracyK

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3 answers

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Answer 1

Stefan Blom 339.3K MVP Volunteer Moderator

In Word on the laptop, if you click File > Account, which e-mail address is indicated at the right hand side of the screen (under "subscription product")? For privacy and security reasons, you should not repeat the e-mail here, but you can try signing in with that e-mail at https://account.microsoft.com/services which should show you the subscription.

Note that the account you are using to keep the subscription activated doesn't have to be the same account that you use to access OneDrive files or sign in to Windows.

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Answer 2

Tracy Kinnebrew 0

Q&A Assist wrote:

The tablet is most likely signed in with a different Microsoft account than the one that has the paid Microsoft 365 subscription, which is why it only shows a “free” account and asks to sign up.

Thanks, but I know to look at my account and see what my log-in information is and I only have ONE account log-in for Microsoft. And, I'm using that same log-in for the new tablet, so there is no other account.

Who would I speak with to help me understand where my payments have been going to (for what account) because my account should be reflected as a paid subscription account not free?

Regards,

Jeronimo Fuerte 38,760 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-05-04T22:25:38.63+00:00

Hi! Sorry to hear that you are having trouble with this situation.

Could you please sign in to the following page using the same Microsoft account that is signed in on the tablet, and confirm whether the charges appear there?

https://account.microsoft.com/billing/orders

If you can see the charges, please share a screenshot here, making sure not to show any personal information.

If you cannot see the charges, please let me know whether you have access to that subscription on any other device. If you do, please open any Office app on that device and check which email account is being used ther
Tracy Kinnebrew 0 Reputation points

2026-05-04T22:45:33.8966667+00:00

Hello Jeronimo, it says "no purchases made." And, it does show by my initials the correct account email that I started it with. I only have one account log-in. On my new tablet, it does show by my initials also, the SAME correct account email that I log-in with, as I only have one account.
Jeronimo Fuerte 38,760 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-05-04T23:04:14.6833333+00:00
I understand. However, if you subscribed to this service directly through Microsoft, all payments should appear in your Microsoft account order history.

If the payments do not appear there, it usually means one of two things:

The subscription was purchased through a third-party service, or

The subscription is linked to a different Microsoft account.

It is also possible that the email address looks very similar to another one and only differs by one character.

The best option is to sign in on the HP laptop where the subscription is working correctly. Then open any Microsoft 365 app, click the profile icon in the top-right corner, and confirm the exact email address shown there.

After that, select My Microsoft account from that same profile menu and check whether the subscription and billing information appear under that account.

Please let me know what you find there.
Tracy Kinnebrew 0 Reputation points

2026-05-04T23:23:40.54+00:00

Thank you but, I have been on my HP laptop all along trying to figure this out. When I first purchased the HP laptop, it was one of the prompts of setting up the laptop. And my payment on the card shows it's being paid to Microsoft. That's what makes this thing so weird, I've been paying to Microsoft for the past two and a half years on one login account. And when I went to set up my new tablet and downloaded Excel and Word it shows my login account name, my initials and all. Slightly frustrating.
Jeronimo Fuerte 38,760 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-05-04T23:38:35.4633333+00:00

I understand, but could you please try the steps exactly as I mentioned?

On the device where the subscription is working, open Word, click your profile picture in the top-right corner, then select My Microsoft account. Please confirm whether the subscription appears there.

I understand that you have been paying for it for two years, but the subscription could be linked to a different Microsoft account, as mentioned before. It is also possible that it was purchased through a third-party provider, such as Google Play or Apple, or that the charge is unrelated to Microsoft.

The only reliable way to confirm this is to check the account directly from the device where the subscription is currently active. Once you confirm the Microsoft account shown there, you can use the subscription management link from that same account.
Tracy Kinnebrew 0 Reputation points

2026-05-05T01:07:42.2266667+00:00

Ok, after diving a little deeper, I've found that the software product IS a purchase through a third-party processor. Now, since I didn't purchase directly from Microsoft, must mean that I don't have an actual account that I am able to access on another computer (tablet) correct?
Jeronimo Fuerte 38,760 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-05-05T01:12:21.7533333+00:00

Depending on where the purchase was made, there should be a Microsoft account associated with the apps on the device where the purchase or activation was completed.

That is why I mentioned checking the HP device. If Microsoft 365 works correctly there, please open any Office app on that HP device, click the profile icon in the upper-right corner, and confirm the email address currently signed in. That should be the account linked to the active subscription.

If Microsoft 365 also does not work on the HP device, you would need to contact the support team of the payment provider, as they should be able to confirm which Microsoft account the subscription was assigned to.
Tracy Kinnebrew 0 Reputation points

2026-05-05T01:34:23.43+00:00

The Hp laptop IS the only device that I have to fully work on and check out all the apps, such as you mentioned logging into Word, PowerPoint and Excel.

The only one email account login that I have IS the one account. interestingly, when I try to log in on the new tablet, such as in Excel and Word, it shows all my files from my account, but still tells me to "buy" and account.
Jeronimo Fuerte 38,760 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-05-05T01:37:43.31+00:00

In this case, the best option would be to contact the payment handler’s support team to confirm exactly what you are being charged for, and whether the account you are currently using is the one connected to that subscription.
Tracy Kinnebrew 0 Reputation points

2026-05-05T02:11:45.7166667+00:00

Thank you.
Jeronimo Fuerte 38,760 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-05-05T02:52:07.3666667+00:00

A pleasure

Answer 3

The tablet is most likely signed in with a different Microsoft account than the one that has the paid Microsoft 365 subscription, which is why it only shows a “free” account and asks to sign up.

To resolve this and get Office and files on the new tablet:

Confirm which account has the paid subscription
- On a device where Office is already working (for example, the HP laptop), open Word or Excel.
- Go to File → Account and check the email address shown under User Information or Product Information. This is usually the account that owns the subscription.
- Alternatively, sign in to the Microsoft account portal from a browser and check subscriptions and billing to confirm which email address shows the active Microsoft 365 subscription.
Sign out of the wrong account on the tablet
- In any Office app on the tablet (Word, Excel, Outlook, etc.), go to the account/profile section.
- Sign out of the current account that is showing as “free.”
Sign in with the correct subscription account
- Still in the Office app on the tablet, choose Sign in.
- Enter the same Microsoft account email that shows the active subscription.
- After signing in, Office should recognize the subscription and allow access to files and subscription features.
If the subscription still does not appear
- Use the guided Microsoft account help tool to troubleshoot sign-in and account issues: Get help with your Microsoft account.
- If the problem persists (for example, the subscription is not visible under any account even though charges appear on the credit card), contact Microsoft support directly for billing and subscription investigation. Use the “Payment and billing help” and support/contact options from the same page.

If sign-in itself fails on the correct account (password not working, account not recognized, or verification issues), use the appropriate recovery options:

For password issues: Reset your password.
For username/email issues: Look up your Microsoft account.
For other sign-in problems or error messages: use the Sign-in Helper tool.

These steps ensure the tablet is using the same paid Microsoft account as the laptop and that any underlying sign-in or account-recognition issues are handled through the official recovery and support paths.

References:

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Microsoft account and accessing on a new computer/tablet

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