7 reasons Windows 11 Pro is worth the upgrade – and the best way to do it – ZDNet
‘ZDNET Recommends’: What exactly does it mean?ZDNET’s recommendations are based on many hours of testing, research, and comparison shopping. We gather data from the best available sources, including vendor and retailer listings as well as other relevant and independent reviews sites. And we pore over customer reviews to find out what matters to real people who already own and use the products and services we’re assessing.When you click through from our site to a retailer and buy a product or service, we may earn affiliate commissions. This helps support our work, but does not affect what we cover or how, and it does not affect the price you pay. Neither ZDNET nor the author are compensated for these independent reviews. Indeed, we follow strict guidelines that ensure our editorial content is never influenced by advertisers.ZDNET’s editorial team writes on behalf of you, our reader. Our goal is to deliver the most accurate information and the most knowledgeable advice possible in order to help you make smarter buying decisions on tech gear and a wide array of products and services. Our editors thoroughly review and fact-check every article to ensure that our content meets the highest standards. If we have made an error or published misleading information, we will correct or clarify the article. If you see inaccuracies in our content, please report the mistake via this form.Anyone who’s shopped for a new PC in recent years is familiar with this phenomenon: The majority of computers you see for sale at local retail outlets (or in online stores aimed primarily at consumers) come with Windows 11 Home edition preinstalled. If you’re buying that PC for work, do you need to upgrade to the Pro edition? What’s the best way to do that without spending a fortune?Step-by-step: How to upgrade from Windows 11 Home to Pro – without overpayingThe reason you see so many PCs preinstalled with Home edition is simple dollars and cents. The PC industry is extremely price-sensitive, and Windows Home edition costs the PC makers less than the Pro edition. That in turn allows them to cut the price tag on a PC model by $50 or more. For most consumers, Home edition is good enough. Businesses that run on Windows enterprise networks or that use business editions of Microsoft 365 need Pro edition, however, because it’s required to join a PC to a Windows domain or Azure Active Directory account and then manage that PC with Group Policy and mobile device management software. For smaller businesses, the answer isn’t so clear.Pro edition has a few added features you might be willing to pay for, especially if you plan to use your PC for business. See anything in that list you need? If you prefer a PC that comes with Windows 11 Pro already installed, your best bet is to look for online stores that specialize in PCs built for business. Dell or HP, for example, offer upgrades to Windows 11 Pro on all their build-to-order PCs, typically at a cost of between $50 and $80. Also: How to upgrade your ‘incompatible’ Windows 10 PC to Windows 11 in 2025Or you can buy one of those PCs with Home edition installed and upgrade it yourself, using either of two options.You can find Windows 11 Pro product keys at discounts of $50-100 from third-party sellers. If you see a “lifetime license” for Windows 11 Pro offered for $49 or less, the seller is likely dealing in “gray market” copies. The product key will probably work, but there’s a very small chance that Microsoft could revoke that license key in the future. Also: The best Windows laptop you can buy: Expert testedIf you’re buying the upgrade for a home PC, it might be worth the gamble, but you’re better off not taking the chance with products you’re buying for a business, especially if there’s a chance your firm could be audited by Microsoft.
