Earlier today, Microsoft announced Office 2019 for Windows and Mac. Like its earlier versions, Office 2019 also includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, Visio, Project, Outlook, and Publisher applications.
Office 2019 includes all the features that have been added to Office 365 since the release of Office 2016.
Ever since Microsoft announced Office 2019 preview earlier this year, some users have been asking if they can install and run Office 2019 on Windows 7 and Windows 8/8.1.
Is Office 2019 compatible with Windows 7 and Windows 8/8.1?
Well, Office 2019 doesn’t support Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1. It is compatible with only the latest version of Windows operating system, which is Windows 10. On the server side, it requires Windows Server 2019.
The Workaround to get Office 2019 on Windows 7 and Windows 8/8.1
There is no way out there to install Office 2019 on Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1. However, since Office 365 is compatible with Windows 7 SP 1 and Windows 8/8.1, you can buy Office 365 (which offers all the features of Office 365 and much more) subscription and install it on Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1 with ease.
For those who are hearing Office 365 for the first time, Office 365 is a subscription service whereas Office 2019 is a one-time purchase.
So, in short, you cannot install Office 2019 on Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1. For your reference, here are the minimum system requirements for running Office 2019.
Office 2019 minimum system requirements
# 1.6 GHz or faster, 2-core processor
2.0 GHz or faster recommended for Skype for Business
# 4 GB RAM for 64-bit; 2 GB RAM for 32-bit
# 4.0 GB free disk space
# 1280 x 768 or higher screen resolution
# Windows 10, Windows Server 2019
# Graphics hardware acceleration requires DirectX 9 or later, with WDDM 2.0 or higher for Windows 10
NOTE 1: If you are running Windows 10 Fall Creators Update or later version, it requires WDDM 1.3 or higher.
NOTE 2: Skype for Business requires DirectX9 or later, 128 MB graphics memory and 32 bits per pixel capable format
You might need to install .NET 3.5 or 4.6 and higher to use some features.
It’s worth mentioning that Office 2019 cannot be installed alongside Office 2016.