Windows LTSC Key Buying Guide: Windows 10 and 11 IoT Enterprise LTSC Licences, Prices, Versions and Activation

Searches for “Windows 11 LTSC key” and “Windows 10 LTSC key” have grown every month since Windows 10’s end of support, and the questions behind them are always the same: which LTSC edition should I buy, how long is it supported, will it run on my hardware, and how do I install and activate it? This guide answers each one for every LTSC edition we sell, with prices, support dates and the exact steps. If you first want to understand what LTSC is, our explainer on what Windows LTSC is covers the concept; this page is about choosing and using the key.

The LTSC editions compared

Edition	Based on	Security updates until	Hardware checks	Price at GetDigiMarket	Best for
Windows 11 IoT Enterprise LTSC 2024	Windows 11 24H2	10 October 2034	Not enforced	$13.99	Any PC, including hardware that fails the Windows 11 check
Windows 11 Enterprise LTSC 2024	Windows 11 24H2	9 October 2029	TPM 2.0, Secure Boot, supported CPU	$14.99	Managed desktops on compliant hardware
Windows 10 IoT Enterprise LTSC 2021	Windows 10 21H2	13 January 2032	None	$8.99	Keeping the Windows 10 desktop, older PCs
Windows 10 Enterprise LTSC 2021	Windows 10 21H2	12 January 2027	None	$11.99	Short-horizon Windows 10 deployments
Windows 10 Enterprise LTSC 2019	Windows 10 1809	9 January 2029	None	$9.99	Legacy applications tested on 1809

Prices are the store prices at the time of writing. All five are perpetual, single-device licences delivered by email within seconds with the official ISO link.

Which one to buy

You want Windows 11 and the longest support. Windows 11 IoT Enterprise LTSC 2024. Ten years of security updates, the Windows 11 desktop without the Store, Copilot or Widgets, and no hardware gatekeeping, so it installs on a 2015 laptop as readily as on a new build.

You want Windows 11 on compliant hardware and your organisation prefers the non-IoT SKU. Windows 11 Enterprise LTSC 2024. Same build, five years of support, hardware checks enforced.

You want to stay on Windows 10 and stay patched. Windows 10 IoT Enterprise LTSC 2021. Supported until 2032, which is more than five years beyond what Windows 10 Home and Pro received, and the cheapest LTSC key we sell.

You are matching an existing Windows 10 LTSC 2019 or 2021 estate. The matching Enterprise LTSC edition keeps the fleet consistent; note the shorter 2027 date for Enterprise LTSC 2021.

If you are torn between Windows 10 and 11 LTSC: the 2024 release has the newer kernel, better scheduler for hybrid CPUs, improved Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth stacks, and support until 2034 against 2032. The Windows 10 release has the familiar taskbar and Start menu and runs lighter on very old hardware. Price is not the deciding factor at five dollars of difference.

What is and is not in an LTSC installation

Included: the full desktop, Settings, File Explorer, Microsoft Defender, BitLocker, Hyper-V, Windows Sandbox, Remote Desktop host, Group Policy, PowerShell, DirectX 12 and the gaming stack, and every Win32 application. Windows 11 LTSC 2024 includes Edge; Windows 10 LTSC 2021 does not ship a browser other than Internet Explorer, so install one from the installer file.

Not included: Microsoft Store, Copilot, Widgets, Cortana, Xbox apps, Mail and Calendar, Photos, News, Weather, OneDrive preinstalled, Microsoft 365 trial, and feature updates. Store apps can be side-loaded, and Microsoft’s own script can add the Store, but Microsoft does not support that configuration.

System requirements

Windows 11 IoT Enterprise LTSC 2024: a 64-bit processor, 4 GB of RAM, 64 GB of storage. UEFI, Secure Boot and TPM 2.0 are recommended for BitLocker and virtualisation-based security but not enforced by setup. Windows 11 Enterprise LTSC 2024 enforces the standard Windows 11 requirements. Windows 10 LTSC 2019 and 2021: 2 GB of RAM, 32 GB of storage, any 64-bit processor from the last fifteen years.

How to install an LTSC key

LTSC cannot be applied to an existing Home or Pro installation with a key; it requires a clean installation from the LTSC media.

1. Back up your files.
2. Click the official Microsoft link in your delivery email to download the LTSC ISO for the edition and language you bought.
3. Write it to an 8 GB USB drive with Rufus (GPT and UEFI for modern PCs, MBR for a legacy BIOS machine). Our bootable USB guide covers the tool.
4. Boot from the USB. There is no edition prompt because the LTSC media contains one edition. Choose Custom installation and the target drive.
5. Complete setup with a local account (LTSC never requires a Microsoft account).
6. Activate: Settings, System, Activation, Change product key, or from an administrator Command Prompt run slmgr /ipk XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX then slmgr /ato. Confirm with slmgr /xpr.
7. Run Windows Update, install drivers from the manufacturer, install a browser and your applications.

Activation problems specific to LTSC

0xC004F074 (no KMS server found). LTSC media is configured for volume activation by default and looks for a company KMS server. Entering your key with slmgr /ipk switches the installation to the correct channel; then slmgr /ato activates online. If slmgr /dlv still shows VOLUME_KMSCLIENT after entering the key, the key was not applied; enter it again.

0xC004C008 or 0xC004C003. Online activation refused the request. Telephone activation with slui 4, or our free Confirmation ID service, completes it. Our guide to keys reported as used or blocked explains why this happens.

Key refused as invalid. You are entering an LTSC key on a Home, Pro or non-LTSC Enterprise installation, or a Windows 10 LTSC key on Windows 11 LTSC media. Install from the matching ISO.

Prices and what “lifetime” means

Every LTSC key on GetDigiMarket is a one-time purchase with no renewal. The licence is valid for the life of the device and the operating system is patched by Microsoft until the date in the table above. A Windows 11 IoT Enterprise LTSC 2024 key at $13.99 therefore buys eight years of security updates from the time of writing; no other Windows licence offers a longer horizon.

Pairing Office with LTSC

For a desktop that should not change, pair the LTSC Windows with Office 2024 Standard LTSC (security-only updates until October 2029) or with Office 2024 Professional Plus if you need Access. Both activate with a key and neither needs a Microsoft account, which keeps the whole machine independent of cloud accounts. Our Standard LTSC vs Professional Plus comparison sets out the differences.

Buying for several machines

LTSC licences are per device. For a workshop, lab or office with several PCs, buy one key per machine or contact us for a quantity; the installation USB can be reused on every machine, and the Windows Update and driver steps are the same. Keep a note of which key went on which machine for your records.

Summary

• Windows 11 IoT Enterprise LTSC 2024 is the default recommendation: longest support, no hardware gatekeeping, Windows 11 desktop.
• Windows 10 IoT Enterprise LTSC 2021 is the choice for keeping Windows 10, patched to 2032.
• All LTSC editions need a clean install from the LTSC ISO and activate with slmgr /ipk and /ato.
• Every key is delivered in seconds and covered by the 180-day money-back guarantee.

LTSC for gaming, home and small-business PCs: what to expect

Gamers run LTSC for the absence of background apps and the fixed feature set. Steam, Epic, GOG and Battle.net install normally, DirectX 12 Ultimate is present, and GPU drivers install from the vendor’s package. The two caveats are games sold only through the Microsoft Store, which need the Store added, and a few anti-cheat systems that check for the General Availability channel; check the game’s requirements if that matters to you.

Home users get a quiet desktop with no suggestions, no Copilot button, no Widgets and no yearly feature update that moves things around. Printers, scanners and peripherals work exactly as on Pro because the driver model is the same.

Small businesses deploy LTSC on point-of-sale terminals, reception PCs, shop-floor machines and any desktop that must behave the same for years. Combine it with Group Policy (included) for lock-down, BitLocker for encryption, and Office LTSC for a fully long-term-serviced image. Because activation is by key and never by Microsoft account, machines can be set up by whoever is on shift without tying the licence to a personal login.

Moving from Windows 10 Home or Pro to LTSC

Treat it as a new PC: export browser bookmarks and passwords, copy Documents, Pictures and Desktop to an external drive or OneDrive, note the keys of licensed applications, and deactivate anything with an activation count (Adobe, some audio software). Install LTSC clean, activate, then restore files and reinstall applications. Allow a morning. The old Windows 10 licence remains attached to the hardware’s digital licence and can be reinstalled later if ever needed; it does not conflict with the LTSC key.

Related guides: What is Windows LTSC?, Windows 10 Pro key with guarantee and Windows 7 product key in 2026.

Frequently asked questions