Can I Upgrade Windows 8 to Windows 11 for free?

Overview of Windows 11

Windows 11 is the latest version of Windows NT operating system produced by Microsoft, it was first announced on June 24, 2021. Compared with Windows 10, Microsoft has made big changes in Windows 11. Windows 11 comes with a truckload of new features, including downloading and running Android apps on your Windows PC, updating to Microsoft Teams, the Start menu and the overall look of the software.

In terms of what Microsoft has said earlier, Windows 11 only supports booting in UEFI boot mode. In this case, if you want to run a PC on Windows 11, the system disk is supposed to be in GPT. This is also the biggest difference between Windows 11 and its counterpart, Windows 10.

How to upgrade Windows 8 to Windows 11 for free?

To be honest, you can’t directly upgrade Windows 8 to Windows 11 – you should first upgrade Windows 8 to Windows 10, and then upgrade to Windows 11. The process is totally free for Windows 8 users. Before we go further, you need to check system requirements for Windows 11, so that you’ll know whether Windows 11 is supported by your PC.

Note: It’s highly recommended to make a backup of your data so nothing will be lost during the OS upgrade.

Part 1. Upgrade Windows 8 to Windows 10

When you first heard of Window upgrade, you might think it was a tedious job. However, conversely, by following the tutorial below, you’ll find it’s not the same as what you’ve expected.

1. Go to the Microsoft Store and click on “Download tool now”.

2. Open the downloaded file once the download is finished.

3. Choose “Yes” when asked whether you want to make changes to the PC.

4. Click on “Accept” to accept all the terms.

5. In the next window, tick “Upgrade this PC now” and then, hit “Next”. It only takes a few mins to upgrade Windows 8 to Windows 10.

Part 2. Convert MBR to GPT

As mentioned before, Windows 11 only support UEFI boot mode, and the system disk need to be GPT. By using Command Prompt, you can convert MBR to GPT. Nevertheless, all data will get lost in this way because all partitions must be deleted. Besides, not all the users can understand the complicated commands.

If you want to avoid the trouble of using CMD, it’s imperative to find a better alternative. This time, I recommend the best third-party disk manager software utility AOMEI Partition Assistant Professional, it is compatible with Windows 11/10/8/7/XP.

With this very tool, you can easily convert MBR to GPT in only a few clicks without any data loss. Want to upgrade Windows 8 to Windows 11? Beforehand, try the demo and convert your system disk from MBR to GPT.

Step 1. Install and launch AOMEI Partition Assistant Professional, right-click on the system disk and select “Convert to GPT”.

Step 2. Hit “OK” for confirmation.

Step 3. Click on “Apply” to commit the conversion.

Part 3. Change Legacy BIOS to UEFI

Once the MBR to GPT conversion is done, you can change Legacy BIOS to UEFI.

To access BIOS, you’ll need to hit a key in the course of the boot-up process. The key often appears during the boot process with a message “Press F2 to access BIOS”, “Press to enter setup”, or something similar. Usually, you may need to hit “Delete”, “F1”, “F2”, or “Escape”.

Use the arrow keys to select UEFI/BIOS boot mode under the tab of “Boot” and then change Legacy to UEFI. Save and quit BIOS.

Part 4. Upgrade Windows 10 to Windows 11

We’ve been through the most complex part and now, everything becomes easy.

1. Launch the Start menu.

2. Select “Settings”.

3. Select “Update & Security” in the setting window.

4. Hit “Check for Update” to upgrade Windows 10 to Windows 11.

Now, the Win 8 to Win 11 upgrade is completed. You can reboot the PC and enjoy those new features and functionalities. 

Conclusion

Can I upgrade Windows 8 to Windows 11 for free? Yes. But you have to first upgrade Windows 8 to Windows 10,  and then, download and install Windows 11. It seems to be complex, but in the post above, a detailed tutorial is given to make everything easier.

Remember, the most important step is converting MBR to GPT. Therefore, AOMEI Partition Assistant Professional is brought in to help you finish the conversion losslessly. Actually, when you use this software, you can find many other useful features including “migrate OS from MBR to GPT”, “split partition”, and “free space allocation”. Plus, if you want to use this AOMEI tool on Servers, please try the Server edition.