How to Install Windows 11 Pro — Download, Install & Activate

Complete Guide · 2026

How to Install Windows 11 Pro: Download, Install & Activate

Learning how to install Windows 11 Pro on your PC is straightforward when you follow the right steps. This guide covers everything — from checking system requirements and downloading the official installation media to performing a clean install and activating your genuine product key.

12 min read Updated 2026 Windows 11 24H2

Whether you’re setting up a brand-new PC, upgrading from Windows 10, or switching from Windows 11 Home, this guide covers every step: checking hardware compatibility, downloading the official installation media, creating a bootable USB drive, performing a clean install, and activating your genuine product key.

System Requirements for Windows 11 Professional

Before installing Windows 11 Professional, make sure your PC meets the following minimum requirements. Installing on unsupported hardware can cause errors and prevent activation.

Component	Requirement
Processor	1 GHz or faster with 2 or more cores on a compatible 64-bit processor or System on a Chip (SoC)
RAM	Minimum 4 GB
Storage	At least 64 GB of available storage
System Firmware	Must support UEFI and be Secure Boot capable
TPM	Trusted Platform Module (TPM) version 2.0
Graphics Card	Compatible with DirectX 12 or later with WDDM 2.0 driver
Display	HD (720p) display, minimum 9" screen, 8 bits per colour channel
Internet	Required for downloading and activation

Additional Notes

Check compatibility using Microsoft’s PC Health Check tool — download it at microsoft.com.
If your device does not support TPM 2.0 or Secure Boot, you may need to enable them in your BIOS/UEFI settings.
Windows 11 cannot be installed on 32-bit systems — a 64-bit processor is required.

How to Download Windows 11 Professional

Download directly from Microsoft’s official website:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows11

Microsoft official Windows 11 software download page

Scroll to “Create Windows 11 Installation Media”

Under this section, click Download Now.

Create Windows 11 Installation Media section with Download Now button

Double-click the downloaded file

Open MediaCreationTool.exe to launch the setup wizard.

Click Accept to agree to the license

Read and accept Microsoft’s license terms to continue.

Microsoft license agreement screen with Accept button

Choose your preferred language and edition

Select your language and confirm Windows 11 as the edition.

Language and edition selection in Media Creation Tool

Choose an installation type and click Next

Select USB flash drive for bootable media, or ISO file to save a disk image.

Choose between USB flash drive and ISO file for Windows 11 installation

Finish creating your installation media

USB Flash Drive: Select your drive, click Next, and wait for the process to finish.
ISO File: Save the ISO to your PC. Once downloaded, open your DVD burner, select your drive, and click Burn.

Windows 11 installation media creation progress screen

Note

Make sure your USB drive has at least 8 GB of free space before starting. All existing data on the drive will be erased during the process.

Booting from Windows 11 Installation Media

With your bootable USB drive or DVD ready, you need to boot your PC from it before the installation can begin.

Need help booting from USB?

Follow the full step-by-step instructions in our dedicated guide:
kymakers.com/booting-from-windows-10-11-installation-media/

With the boot media ready, you can now proceed to install Windows 11 Professional.

Installing Windows 11 Pro

A clean install erases the target drive. Back up all important files before proceeding.

Press any key to boot from the installation media

When prompted on screen, press any key to start booting from your USB or DVD.

Choose the installation language and format

Select your preferred language and time format, then click Next.

Windows 11 setup screen for choosing installation language and format

Choose the keyboard and input method, then click Next

Select your keyboard layout preference.

Keyboard layout selection during Windows 11 setup

Select “Install Windows 11”

Choose the Install Windows 11 option from the menu.

Confirm the clean install and click Next

Check “I agree everything will be deleted including files, apps, and settings”, then click Next.

Click “I don’t have a product key”

Skip key entry here — you will activate Windows after installation is complete.

Product key entry screen with I don't have a product key option highlighted

Select the Windows 11 edition and click Next

Select Windows 11 Pro — make sure this matches the edition your license key activates.

Selecting Windows 11 Pro from the edition list

Accept the license terms

Click Accept to agree to Microsoft’s software license agreement.

Delete existing partitions and select the installation drive

Select each partition on Drive 0 and click Delete. Then select Drive 0 Unallocated Space as the installation target.

Drive partition screen showing Drive 0 partitions to be deleted

Drive 0 unallocated space selected as Windows 11 installation target

Click Next, then click Install

Windows begins copying files and installing features. The PC restarts automatically several times. This takes 15–30 minutes.

Windows 11 installation in progress screen

Once complete, Windows 11 24H2 will finish the clean installation on your computer.

Local Account Tip

During first-run setup, Windows may require a Microsoft account. To use a local account instead, disconnect from the internet temporarily before that step — Windows will then offer the local account option.

Activating Windows 11 Professional

Don’t have a product key yet?

Get a genuine Windows 11 Pro key instantly at kymakers.com — delivered to your email within minutes, with free step-by-step activation support included.

Activation links your product key to your hardware and unlocks all Windows 11 Pro features. Without activation, Windows displays a watermark and personalisation options are restricted.

Go to Settings → System → Activation

Once installation is complete, open Start → Settings, then navigate to System → Activation.

Click the “Change” button in the “Change product key” setting

Under the Activation section, click Change product key.

Enter your 25-digit Windows 11 Pro activation key

Type the product key in the format XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX. Your key is delivered by email when you purchase from Kymakers.

Click Next and follow the prompts

Windows contacts Microsoft’s activation servers. Activation usually completes within seconds with a stable internet connection.

Windows 11 activation screen showing product key entry field in Settings

Once successful, the Activation page will show: “Windows is activated with a digital license linked to your Microsoft account” or “Windows is activated.”