Don’t know whether you are using Windows 11 Home, Pro, or Enterprise edition? Here are a few ways to check Windows 11 edition.
As most of you know, Windows 11 comes in multiple editions. They are the Home, Pro, Enterprise, and Education editions. If you don’t know, the Home and Pro editions are targeted towards regular users, while the Enterprise and Education editions are geared towards companies, organizations, and educational institutions.
Each Windows 11 edition has its specialty and feature set. Depending on which edition you are using, some features may or may not be available. For example, you can only turn on Windows Sandbox when running Pro or Enterprise editions. The same is true for other advanced features like BitLocker encryption, Group Policy Editor, Remote Desktop, App Locker, etc. To put it simply, Windows 11 Home is the basic edition and has several missing advanced features.
Generally, most laptops and pre-built computers come installed with Windows 11 Home edition. One of the main reasons is that the Home edition is cheaper than the Pro or Enterprise editions. For a vast majority of users, the Home edition is perfectly fine. However, to enable and use advanced features, you need to upgrade to the Pro edition. Otherwise, Windows will show an error saying the target feature is not available in the Home edition.
After installing or buying a new Windows 11 computer, knowing which Windows 11 edition is installed is essential. That way, you can be sure of what you can and cannot do on your computer. Thankfully, Windows 11 has multiple ways to find which edition you are running.
This quick and easy how-to guide will show four easy ways to check Windows 11 edition. Follow the one you like to find which Windows 11 edition is installed on your computer.
Jump to:
- Differences between editions
- From the Windows 11 About page
- From System Information
- Use Winver command
- From Windows Terminal
Difference between Home, Pro, and Enterprise editions
When there are multiple editions of the same operating system, there are bound to be differences. This is especially true where is a significant price disparity between editions. Here are some of the important differences between the Windows 11 Home, Pro, and Enterprise editions. The table below lists some of the advanced and important features available in some or all editions of Windows 11.
Features/Editions | Home Edition | Pro Edition | Enterprise Edition | Education Edition |
Device Encryption | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Application Control | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Group Policy Management | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Remote Desktop | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Windows Hello for Business | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
BitLocker & BitLocker to Go | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Windows Sandbox | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Support for ReFS | No | No | Yes | Yes |
Windows to Go | No | No | Yes | Yes |
Branch Cache | No | No | Yes | Yes |
Direct Access | No | No | Yes | Yes |
Assigned Access | No | No | Yes | Yes |
Enterprise Mode Internet Explorer | No | No | Yes | Yes |
The above list is not exhaustive. However, it shows some of the important features only available for some specific Windows 11 editions. You can learn more about the differences from here: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/windowsforbusiness/compare
1. From the Windows 11 About page
Windows 11 has a dedicated About page that shows details about your computer’s hardware and the operating system. You can check Windows 11 edition from the About page. Here is how.
- Press “Win + I” to open Settings.
- Click “System” on the sidebar.
- Click on “About” at the bottom.
- Installed Windows edition is listed next to “Edition” under the “Windows Specifications” section.
- With that, you now know what Windows 11 edition you are using.
Detailed steps:
The about page is available in the Settings app. So, the first thing to do is open it. You can either search for “Settings” in the Start menu or press the “Windows key + I” keyboard shortcut. You can also right-click on the Start menu and select “Settings.”
After opening the Settings app, select “System” on the sidebar, scroll down in the main panel and click on the “About” option.
On the main panel, find the “Windows Specifications” section. Under here, the installed edition is specified next to the “Edition” heading. For example, I’m using the Pro edition. So, it is listed as “Windows 11 Pro.” If you use Home or Enterprise edition, you will see “Windows 11 Home” or “Windows 11 Enterprise,” respectively.
Once you know which Windows 11 edition you are using, close the Settings app.
2. From System Information
Windows has a dedicated “System Information” application that shows many details regarding your system hardware and the operating system. Compared to the Settings app’s About page, the System Information tool gives you much more information. Here is how to open the System Information tool and find Windows 11 edition.
- Press the Start key on your keyboard.
- Search and open “System Information.”
- Select “System Summary” on the sidebar.
- Installed Windows Edition is listed next to the “OS Name” heading.
- With that, you now know what Windows 11 edition you are using.
Detailed steps:
First, we need to open the System Information software. To do that, open the Start menu, search for “System Information,” and click on the result. Alternatively, open the Run dialog box with the “Windows key + R” shortcut, type “msinfo32” in the blank field, and press the “Ok” button.
In the System Information window, select the “System Summary” option on the sidebar. You will see the installed edition name next to the “OS Name” heading on the right panel. For example, I’m using the Pro edition. So, the OS Name heading lists it as “Microsoft Windows 11 Pro.” For Home and Enterprise editions, you will see “Microsoft Windows 11 Home” and “Microsoft Windows 11 Enterprise,” respectively.
3. Use the Winver command
Windows has a nifty tool called Winver that shows the Windows 11 version and build number. Along with that, this tool also shows the installed Windows 11 edition. Here’s how to find it.
- Open the Run window (Win + R).
- Type “winver” in the blank field.
- Press the “Ok” button.
- The installed edition is listed in the first paragraph.
- With that, you now know the Windows 11 edition.
Detailed steps:
First, we need to open the winver tool. For that, open the Run dialog box with the “Windows key + R” shortcut. After that, type “winver” in the blank field and press the “Ok” button. You can also search for “winver” in the Start menu. In the winver window, you will see the installed Windows 11 edition at the start of the first paragraph. Take a look at the highlighted part of the below image for reference.
4. From Windows Terminal
You can also find Windows 11 edition from the command line using Windows Terminal. You have to execute a single command; it will show the installed Windows 11 edition. Here is how.
- Right-click on the Start menu.
- Select “Windows Terminal.”
- Type “systeminfo.”
- Press the Enter key on your keyboard.
- Installed Windows edition is listed next to the “OS Name” heading.
Detailed steps:
To open Windows Terminal, right-click on the Start menu and select the “Windows Terminal” option. You can also search for “Windows Terminal” in the Start menu.
After opening it, type “systeminfo” and press the Enter key. Doing so will list all the system details. At the top, the installed Windows 11 edition is listed next to the “OS Name” heading. For example, I’m using the Pro edition. So, the OS Name heading lists it as “Microsoft Windows 11 Pro.” For Home and Enterprise editions, you will see “Microsoft Windows 11 Home” and “Microsoft Windows 11 Enterprise,” respectively.
That is all. It is that simple to check Windows 11 edition.
I hope that helps.
If you are stuck or need some help, comment below, and I will try to help as much as possible.