Microsoft Access 2024 is included in Office Professional Plus 2024 (Office LTSC Professional Plus 2024), but not in Office Home 2024, Office Home & Business 2024 or Office Standard 2024. You can also buy Access as a standalone one-time licence or get it through several Microsoft 365 plans. Access runs on Windows only; there is no Mac version.
| Product | Includes Access? | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Office Professional Plus 2024 / LTSC Professional Plus 2024 | Yes | With Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote |
| Office LTSC Standard 2024 | No | Core apps and Outlook only |
| Office Home & Business 2024 | No | Adds Outlook to the core apps |
| Office Home 2024 | No | Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote |
| Access standalone (one-time) | Yes | One Windows PC |
| Microsoft 365 Personal and Family | Yes | Windows PCs only |
| Microsoft 365 Apps for business, Business Standard, Business Premium | Yes | Windows PCs only |
| Microsoft 365 Business Basic | No | Web and mobile apps only |
| Any Office edition on Mac | No | Access is not available for macOS |
Is Access included in Office 2024 Professional Plus?
Yes. Microsoft's Office LTSC 2024 overview states that Office LTSC Professional Plus 2024 includes Access, Excel, OneNote, Outlook, PowerPoint and Word, with Skype for Business as an optional install. Access is the main app that separates Professional Plus from the cheaper Office editions.
Publisher, which was part of Professional Plus 2021, is no longer included in the 2024 release because Microsoft retired Publisher in October 2026. That leaves Access as the defining extra in Professional Plus.
A Office 2024 Professional Plus key for Windows therefore gives you Access alongside the full desktop set on one PC; see the current price on the product page.
Which Office 2024 editions do not include Access?
Office Home 2024, Office Home & Business 2024 and Office LTSC Standard 2024 do not include Access. Home has Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote; Home & Business and Standard add Outlook. If you buy one of these and later need Access, you add a standalone Access licence or switch to Professional Plus.
This is the most common surprise for small businesses. Home & Business sounds like the business edition, but it is aimed at sole traders who need Outlook, not at teams running databases.
Our comparisons of Office 2024 Home & Business vs Professional Plus and Office LTSC Standard vs Professional Plus cover the full app and licence differences.
What is new in Access 2024?
Access 2024 adds a modern SQL editor with syntax highlighting and auto-completion, ten new chart types, a Microsoft Edge browser control for forms, VBA code signing, direct SQL View from the Navigation Pane, a Dataverse connector, larger limits for open tables and connections, and Large Address Aware support for 32-bit Access.
The details from Microsoft's What's new in Access 2024 page that matter most in day-to-day use are:
- Higher limits: open tables rise from 2,048 to 4,096, and available connections from 256 to 512.
- Large Address Aware: 32-bit Access on 64-bit Windows can use up to 4 GB of address space instead of 2 GB, helping complex front ends.
- Modern charts: area, radar, box and whisker, funnel, waterfall, word cloud and other chart types.
- Edge browser control: display a web page on a form by specifying a URL.
- Code signing: sign a database so its VBA runs under policies that only trust signed code.
Advanced nuance: Microsoft notes that some features in that article, such as the redesigned SQL editor, were delivered first to Microsoft 365 Current Channel. The perpetual Access 2024 receives security updates but no new features after release, so check the feature on your build before planning around it.
Can I buy Microsoft Access 2024 on its own?
Yes. Microsoft sells Access as a standalone one-time purchase for one Windows PC, listed at $179.99 on its US store at the time of writing (November 2026). That suits someone who already has Word and Excel and needs only Access, though Professional Plus can work out better value if you need the full Office set too.
Compare the total cost before deciding. Office Home & Business plus a standalone Access licence is two purchases to manage, while Professional Plus covers the same apps under one key, with one activation and one support date to track. Our Office 2024 price comparison explains why edition prices vary between sellers.
Which Microsoft 365 plans include Access?
Microsoft's Access subscription support page lists Microsoft 365 Personal, Microsoft 365 Family, Microsoft 365 Apps for business, Business Standard and Business Premium as including Access. Microsoft 365 Business Basic does not, because it provides web and mobile apps only and Access is a desktop app.
In every plan, Access installs only on Windows PCs. A Microsoft 365 Family subscriber who uses a Mac can install Word, Excel and PowerPoint there, but not Access.
Cause and effect: because Access is desktop-only, organisations moving users to cheaper web-only plans often discover broken workflows months later. Before downgrading any licence, list who opens .accdb files.
Is Microsoft Access available for Mac?
No. Microsoft states that Access is not available for devices running macOS, in any edition or subscription. Mac users who need Access typically run Windows in a virtual machine, use a separate Windows PC or remote desktop, or move the data to a cross-platform tool such as a web-based database or Dataverse.
For running Windows on Apple hardware, our guide to running Windows 11 on a Mac covers the practical options, including Apple silicon. Each Windows installation needs its own Windows licence, and Access then needs its own Office or Access licence inside that Windows installation.
Can I open Access databases without buying Access?
Yes, to run a finished application. Microsoft's free Microsoft 365 Access Runtime lets a PC without Access open and use a completed Access application, but all design features are removed or disabled. You cannot create tables, change forms or edit queries with the runtime.
This is the standard way to distribute an Access front end to colleagues who only enter data. One developer licence with full Access, plus the runtime on other PCs, can be a sensible combination for small teams.
What we commonly see: businesses buy full Professional Plus for every desk because one person built an Access database. If most staff only use the forms, the runtime may cover them, while the person who maintains the database keeps full Access.
Do I need Access, or is Excel enough?
Excel is enough for lists, calculations and analysis that one person maintains in a single sheet. Access is the better tool when data lives in related tables, several people enter records through forms, you need to stop duplicates and invalid entries, or you produce the same reports repeatedly from growing data.
| Need | Excel | Access |
|---|---|---|
| Quick analysis, charts, what-if models | Strong | Limited |
| Related tables (customers, orders, products) | Awkward, via lookups | Built for it |
| Data entry forms with validation | Basic | Strong |
| Several users editing at once | Co-authoring, no record locking | Record-level locking on a shared back end |
| Repeatable printed reports | Manual | Built-in report designer |
A useful test is whether you keep copying the same customer or product details into new rows. Once that repetition starts, a relational database saves time and prevents mismatched records, and that is when Professional Plus or a standalone Access licence starts paying for itself.
How long will Access 2024 be supported?
Access 2024 and Access LTSC 2024 receive security updates until 9 October 2029, the same date as the rest of Office 2024. After that the app keeps working, but without security fixes. Access 2021 already reached end of support on 13 October 2026.
Plan any migration of business-critical databases with that date in mind. Our guide to the Office 2024 end-of-support date covers what changes after 2029 and the options at that point.
Frequently asked questions
Is Access included in Office Home and Business 2024?
No. Office Home & Business 2024 includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote and Outlook, but not Access. To get Access with a one-time licence, choose Office Professional Plus 2024 or buy Access as a standalone product. Microsoft 365 Personal, Family and most business plans also include Access on Windows PCs.
Can Access 2024 open databases made in older versions?
Yes. Access 2024 opens .accdb databases created in Access 2007 and later without conversion, and can convert Access 2000 to 2003 .mdb files to .accdb. Files from Access 97 and earlier need converting in an older version first, so test older databases on a copy before upgrading everyone.
Should I install 32-bit or 64-bit Access 2024?
Microsoft installs 64-bit by default, which suits most new databases and large datasets. Choose 32-bit only if you rely on older ActiveX controls, 32-bit ODBC drivers or add-ins that have no 64-bit version. All Office apps on one PC must use the same bitness, so decide before installing the rest of Office.
Can I install Access 2024 alongside Microsoft 365?
Mixing a perpetual Access 2024 install with Microsoft 365 Apps on the same PC is possible only in supported combinations using the same installation technology and channel rules, and it often causes conflicts. If you already have Microsoft 365 Personal, Family or a business plan that includes Access, simply install Access from that subscription instead.
Is Microsoft Access being discontinued?
No discontinuation has been announced. Microsoft released Access 2024 with new features, includes it in current Microsoft 365 plans and supports it until 9 October 2029. Access remains a Windows desktop product, so organisations needing browser or mobile access usually pair it with SharePoint, SQL Server or Dataverse back ends.
Related guides
- Office 2024 Professional Plus: download, install and activate
- ProPlus2024Retail vs ProPlus2024Volume product IDs
- Office Home & Student vs Home & Business
- Office 2024 Pro Plus offline installer (64-bit)
Links in this guide
| Link | Type | Why it helps |
|---|---|---|
| Office LTSC 2024 overview | External | Microsoft's list of apps in LTSC Professional Plus 2024, including Access |
| Office 2024 Professional Plus for Windows | Internal | One-time licence that includes Access on Windows |
| Home & Business vs Professional Plus | Internal | Full edition comparison |
| Office LTSC Standard vs Professional Plus | Internal | Volume edition comparison, including Access |
| What's new in Access 2024 | External | Official list of Access 2024 features and limits |
| Office 2024 price comparison | Internal | Why edition prices differ between sellers |
| Access included in Microsoft 365 subscriptions | External | Which Microsoft 365 plans include Access |
| Run Windows 11 on Mac | Internal | Options for running Access on Apple hardware |
| Microsoft 365 Access Runtime | External | Free runtime for running, not designing, Access apps |
| Office 2024 end-of-support date | Internal | Planning beyond October 2029 |
| Office 2024 Pro Plus install guide | Internal | Installation steps after purchase |
| Office product IDs for the ODT | Internal | Deploying Pro Plus with Access via the ODT |
| Home & Student vs Home & Business | Internal | Choosing between editions without Access |
| Office 2024 offline installer | Internal | Offline installation of Pro Plus |