Signing in for the very first time
Your work account is one email address and one password that opens everything: Outlook, Teams, OneDrive and your company files. The first time you sign in, Microsoft will ask you to set up the Microsoft Authenticator app on your phone. Start there.
Part A: Set up Microsoft Authenticator (first sign-in only)
Authenticator is a free app on your phone. It confirms it is really you each time you sign in. Microsoft will walk you through this automatically the first time, so do not be surprised when it pops up. Here is exactly what you will see.
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Install the app on your phone first
On an iPhone open the App Store. On an Android phone open the Play Store. Search for Microsoft Authenticator and tap Get or Install. It is free and made by Microsoft. Open it once and tap Accept or Continue on the welcome screens, then set it down for a moment.
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On the computer, sign in with your work email
Open your web browser (Microsoft Edge is the blue and green swirl on the taskbar), click in the address bar at the top, type office.com and press Enter. Click Sign in, type your work email address, click Next, type your password and click Sign in.
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You will see "More information required"
This is normal and it is Microsoft asking you to set up Authenticator. Click Next.
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Click Next on the "Start by getting the app" screen
Microsoft tells you to install the Authenticator app. You already did that in step 1, so click Next. On the "Set up your account" screen, click Next again. A square barcode (a QR code) appears on the computer screen.
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On your phone, add your work account
Pick up your phone and open Authenticator. Tap the + in the top corner (or Add account). Tap Work or school account, then tap Scan a QR code. If the phone asks to use the camera, tap Allow or OK.
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Point the phone camera at the computer screen
Hold the phone so the square barcode fits inside the box on the phone screen. It reads it in a second or two and your work account appears in the app. Back on the computer, click Next.
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Approve the test sign-in
The computer now shows a two-digit number. Your phone pops up a box that says "Are you trying to sign in?". Type the two-digit number from the computer into your phone and tap Yes. The computer says "Notification approved". Click Next, then Done.
Tip If the phone asks you to set up a phone lock or to allow notifications, say yes. Notifications are how the approval request reaches you.
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You are set up
You only do this once. From now on, whenever you sign in to anything with your work account, your phone will buzz and you simply type the number shown and tap Yes.
What is a Microsoft account?
A short official Microsoft video explaining what your account is and why one sign-in works everywhere. Your work account works the same way, but it is managed by your company.
Video not loading? Open it on YouTube.
Part B: Signing in to your Microsoft work account every day
After the one-time setup above, this is all you do. The same steps work for Outlook, Teams and OneDrive, whether you use the app on your computer or a web browser.
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Open your web browser
Click the Microsoft Edge icon (a blue and green swirl) or Google Chrome (a red, yellow and green circle) on your taskbar.
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Go to the Microsoft 365 website
Click in the address bar at the very top, type office.com and press Enter.
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Click Sign in
Click the Sign in button. Type your work email address, click Next, type your password, then click Sign in.
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Approve on your phone
Your phone buzzes. Open Microsoft Authenticator, type the number shown on the computer and tap Yes.
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Choose whether to stay signed in
On your own work computer, click Yes so you do not have to sign in every time. On a shared or public computer, click No.
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You are in
You will see the Microsoft 365 home page. The app icons down the left side (Outlook, Teams, OneDrive, Word, Excel) open each app in the browser. Click the small grid of nine dots in the top-left corner to see every app.