Transferring Microsoft 2011 from an old MacBook to a new 2020 MacBook

CJR1411 Said:

"Transferring Microsoft 2011 from an old MacBook to a new 2020 MacBook: [...]I need to subscribe to Microsoft 365 now, which I am happy to do, but still don't know how to migrate my existing Microsoft Office contents to the new computer/Office 365. Would be very grateful for help..."

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Use MS Office 365 or 2019:

Office 2011 is incompatible with Catalina - you need Office 2019 or Office 365.

To Migrate it Over:

Try backing up your Mac, and then using Migration Assistant:

1. Backup Your 2011 Mac: Back up your Mac with Time Machine - Apple Support
2. Migrating it Over: How to Move your Content to a New Mac - Apple Support

Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, etc. files are just files. You can copy them over to the new computer the same way you would copy any file. You need to purchase and install Office 2019 or Office 365.

if you want to continue running Microsoft Office. Or you can open you old Office documents using LibreOffice, Pages, Numbers, GoogleDocs, or any other app that opens Office documents.

CJR1411 Said:

"[...]My question is how to transfer the 2011 content to 365 either on the old computer (and then try and transfer again to the new computer??) or do I get 365 on the new computer first, and then try and transfer from the old computer to the new?"

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No. You cannot transfer its contents - MS Licenses only go by Device.

A. So, you need to get a one-device license (2019), which will last you as long as you computer lasts

or...

B. You can get the 365 Version, which will last you 5 or 6 devices, which you must renew annually.