How to Upgrade Windows 10 Home to Pro
If you’re running Windows 10 Home edition, but need the extra features that Windows 10 Pro provides, here’s how to get it using the Easy Upgrade feature.
Windows 10 is available in a variety of editions, targeting different markets and user needs. The three most popular editions are Windows 10 Home, Pro, and Enterprise. Most new PCs will come preloaded with Windows 10 Home. But if you’re a business or power user you might need the unique capabilities of the Pro edition such as Remote Desktop, business networking, BitLocker Drive Encryption, Group Policy, and more. Here’s a look at using the Easy Upgrade feature, which lets you upgrade to a higher version of Windows 10.
Upgrade to Windows 10 Pro or Enterprise Using Easy Upgrade Feature
During the free upgrade offer, Microsoft made it known Windows 10 will be free to every PC or device running a genuine version of Windows 7 or Windows 8.1. Your system was upgraded to the logical edition. For example, Windows 7 Home Basic or Premium upgraded to Windows 10 Home. But you might want or need some of the richer capabilities available in the Pro version. To do this, you will need to purchase the Windows 10 Pro Pack. Or use an existing Windows 10 Pro or Enterprise key.
Employer Volume License
There’s also good news for users who have Home Use rights through an employer’s volume license program. A volume license is a convenient way for large businesses to purchase Windows licenses in bulk. Then, it is deployed to all the computers in the organization. A volume license also includes flexible options that allow an organization’s employees to upgrade their personal devices to the organization’s licensed edition of Windows.
So, for example, if your company is running Windows 10 Enterprise edition and you are running Windows 10 Home on your personal laptop, you can easily upgrade. This is important for ease of use, management, and support rights that guarantee all systems are standardized and are protected using the benefits that are available with that particular edition.
Upgrade from Pro to Enterprise Edition
For the purposes of this article, I will be upgrading Windows 10 Pro to Windows 10 Enterprise. Of course, the same procedures apply if you want to upgrade Windows 10 Home to Windows 10 Pro using either a retail Windows 10 Pro license or a Pro Pack key.
Purchase Windows 10 Pro Upgrade from Windows 10 Home
If you are already running Windows 10 Home, you can purchase an upgrade to Windows 10 Pro through the Windows Store. Click Start > Settings > Update & Security > Activation > Go to Store, and click $99.00 USD. Please note, Easy Upgrade will preserve your personal files, applications, and settings, it simply unlocks the edition, the process is quite similar to the Windows Anytime Upgrade in Windows 7.
Upgrade to Windows 10 Pro or Enterprise Using an Existing Product Key
Once you have your Windows 10 key ready, select System.
Select About then Change product key or upgrade your edition of Windows.
Click Yes if User Account Control comes up.
Enter your product key for the edition you are upgrading to, whether it is Pro or Enterprise. Then wait while the product key verified.
 Make sure all open applications are closed and your work is saved, and then start the upgrade. Wait while the upgrade process kicks off. Your computer will be restarted several times throughout this process.
The amount of time the upgrade takes will vary between systems. But in my experience, it only took 5 to 10 minutes.
That’s it! Closeout of the upgrade complete verification screen and start using your new edition of Windows.
If you decide you need to transfer your Windows 10 Pro Pack license to another computer in the future, check out our article for instructions on how to do so.
13 Comments
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Learjet
September 9, 2015 at 9:31 am
$99? Uh, NO.
VMCI
September 15, 2015 at 11:18 am
$99? Uh, YES! I followed the above directions to upgrade from Windows 10 Home to Windows 10 Pro. It was fast, easy, and did only cost $99. Horray for something easy in the computer world!
Thanks for the great instructions!
bob
March 5, 2016 at 7:28 am
Learjet, keep in mind that is $99 USD and is for an upgrade. The full version of Pro and the upgrade are different prices. Don’t buy the full when you only want an upgrade!
joais
April 29, 2016 at 3:40 am
to expensive i will go with the crack lol
jeremy
June 4, 2016 at 5:27 am
I’ve tried this twice yesterday and it was stuck on getting your pc ready for several hours. I got tired of that and just cut the pc off.
randyre
June 19, 2016 at 10:05 am
Same here. Stuck at preparing 100% What now?
Angela
June 25, 2016 at 10:03 am
Same here…nothing when trying to upgrade. No notification on error codes or anything. Erghhhh!! Just trying to upgrade to Home edition of 10.
Moody
July 21, 2016 at 6:36 am
I tried upgrading form w10 home to w10 pro. Process stuck on preparing upgrade 88% for over 9(nine) hours. What can I do next? Is my $99.00 lost?
Eric
August 2, 2016 at 7:49 am
No its not lost, you can reinstall the whole OS from USB. When you start the process, click “I don’t have a license key” when it asks you, then select Windows 10 Professional.
If it doesn’t auto activate after installing (It should), call Microsoft to have the activation forced through. Be sure to have the purchase confirmation email that you received during the upgrade process available.
Sean Dougall
October 15, 2016 at 4:15 pm
Hi, I hope someone can help me out please.
My PC originally came with Windows 8.1, I upgraded to 10 Home last year and I have decided to upgrade to 10 Pro. I’ve bought the License from a third party (reputable) vendor and started the download.
After the files had arrived, I started the installation and it got to about 70% when a blue screen came up asking me to enter my home country, language, keyboard layout and time zone.
I did that, clicked ‘next’ and got a blue screen with ‘Use Express Settings’ on it. I selected this, my PC rebooted only to return to the blue screen asking me to enter my location details etc.
It is now stuck in this cycle. I don’t know what to do now, any advice would be appreciated.
Jonathan
September 15, 2017 at 1:30 am
I recently set-yp one of my old college laptops, and have been dealing with the Windows 10 Activation problem for almost 3 months. My laptop shows two different product keys. Have called Microsoft and had a tech look at the system via remote access, and it took them an hour to do what took me 20 minutes prior to me call tech support. At which point, Microsoft tells me to call the manufacturer….
Upon doing this, I repeat the same process that I just went through with Microsoft, but the manufacturer says the only option is pay them $300 and buy a *genuine* Windows 10 key from them and it would be upgraded to CREATIVE, or whatever the latest release was… Politely, as possible told the service representative. F THAT, a laptop new that has a dual OS roughly goes for the price your requesting for software that again will be *out-dated* to certain tech standards in probably less than 6 months. Hello, soon to be cracked OS because there’s still people in society that understand not everyone blindly follows the consumerism of our current society.
Viktor László Takács
April 20, 2019 at 3:42 am
Hi’
How do I upgrade my single laptop from Pro to Enterprise?
Alan
December 27, 2019 at 6:05 pm
ver 1909 attempting to upgrade 10 home to Pro; this doesn’t seem to work any more. Maybe just simple method not going to work. Will have to try the USB key method next.