How to fix 2021 Office on iMac

Hello Seth Ahiekpor

I understand that the issues you’re seeing appears to involve two separate things: the Office 2021 activation and the OneDrive sync connection on the iMac.

Office 2021 is a one-time purchase, but activation on Mac still depends on the Microsoft account that holds that license. If that account was deleted, the usual reinstall/activation option may no longer appear in the account portal

For the OneDrive issue, stopping sync may not fully disconnect it from the Mac. Please try these steps:

• Select the OneDrive cloud icon in the menu bar.
• Open Help & Settings > Preferences > Account.
• Select Unlink this Mac. This disconnects the Mac from OneDrive without deleting files from your OneDrive account.
• If you no longer want OneDrive installed, open Finder > Applications and drag OneDrive to the Trash. Microsoft notes that uninstalling OneDrive does not remove files from the OneDrive account itself.

I hope this helps get the Mac disconnected from OneDrive first so you can stabilize your files.

For Office 2021, if the only license owner was the deleted msn.com account, self-service reinstallation may not be available.

Feel free reply back to this post if you need further assistance, I'll be happy to help.

Follow these steps to get Office 2021 working again on the iMac without moving to Microsoft 365.

1. Confirm which account still has the Office 2021 license
   Since the original msn.com account was deleted, the Office 2021 license may no longer be accessible through that account. If the license was ever moved or associated with another Microsoft account, sign in to the Services & subscriptions page with any other Microsoft accounts that might have been used and check if Office 2021 appears there.
   If a valid license is found, Office can be reinstalled from that account as described under “Installing or Reinstalling.”
2. Remove any incorrect/old license files from the Mac
   If Office is prompting to activate Microsoft 365 instead of using the perpetual 2021 license, clear the existing license information:
   • Use the Office license removal tool for Mac to remove all Office license files. This completely removes all Microsoft 365 for Mac licenses and helps if the apps are still using an old or conflicting license.
   • Before running the tool, ensure the correct account credentials for the valid Office license are available for reactivation.
3. Uninstall the current Office apps from the Mac
   To avoid conflicts between 365 and 2021:
   • Close all Office apps.
   • Open Finder → Applications.
   • Select all Microsoft Office apps (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook) and choose Move to Trash, then empty the Trash.
4. Reinstall Office 2021
   If the Office 2021 license is still associated with a working Microsoft account:
   • Sign in to the Microsoft account dashboard Services & subscriptions page with that account.
   • Locate the Office 2021 product and select Install.
   • Download and run the installer package to reinstall Office 2021 on the iMac.
   If instead the product key is for a perpetual Mac license (Home & Business or similar) and direct installers are needed, use the appropriate Mac installer package for Office 2019/2021-era perpetual products (for example, the Office 2021/2019 for Mac installer). Once installed, activate using the account that currently holds the license.
5. Activate Office 2021 on the Mac
   After installation:
   • Open Launchpad → Microsoft Word.
   • In the What’s New window, select Get Started to begin activation.
   • Sign in with the Microsoft account that currently has the Office 2021 license (not the deleted msn.com account).
   • If activation fails with a “No license found” message, verify again that the signed-in account actually shows an Office license on the Services & subscriptions page.
6. If prompted for Microsoft 365 instead of 2021
   • Ensure that all Microsoft 365 trial or subscription licenses have been removed using the license removal tool.
   • Confirm that the installed apps are from the perpetual Office 2019/2021 Mac installer, not from a Microsoft 365 subscription download.
   • If the “No license found” or similar activation errors persist even though the perpetual license is valid, follow the Mac activation troubleshooting steps, including verifying the correct Microsoft account and checking for any “installation limit reached” messages.

If the Office 2021 license is only tied to the deleted msn.com account and was never moved or reassigned, and it no longer appears under any accessible Microsoft account, it cannot be reinstalled or reactivated from the portal. In that case, support would need to confirm license status, or a new perpetual license would be required.

References:

• Reactivate Microsoft 365 or Office
• How to remove Office license files on a Mac
• What to try if you can't install or activate Office for Mac
• Download and install or reinstall Office 2021, Office 2019, or Office 2016
• Microsoft Office activation and the Mac App Store