Windows 11 Education shares its core feature set with Pro — BitLocker, Hyper-V, Remote Desktop, domain join — but is licensed specifically for schools and educational institutions, with a few adjustments aimed at that context.
Shared Features With Pro
BitLocker encryption, Hyper-V virtualization, Remote Desktop hosting, Group Policy Editor, and domain/Azure AD join are all included, identical to Pro.
What's Different
Education edition defaults to a more locked-down configuration suited to shared school devices, and Cortana/certain consumer-facing features are disabled by default. Licensing is also structured specifically for institutional/academic purchasing rather than individual retail sale.
Should an Individual Buy Education Edition?
Generally not — it's licensed and priced for institutional use, and Pro covers the identical functional feature set for individual purchasers without the academic licensing restrictions.
