Opinion
Perpetual license vs subscription: the five-year cost of Office
We did the arithmetic on Microsoft 365 against a one-time Office purchase. The gap is bigger than most people think.
Microsoft 365 Personal costs around $100 a year. Over five years that is $500 for one user. A perpetual Office Home 2024 license costs $127 once.
When the subscription wins
- You need 1 TB of OneDrive storage.
- You install on five devices and share with family.
- You want every new feature the moment it ships.
When the perpetual license wins
- You use one or two PCs.
- You do not need cloud storage beyond the free tier.
- You prefer a stable interface that does not change under you.
The hybrid approach
Many of our customers buy a perpetual suite for the desktop and keep a free Microsoft account for OneDrive and web Office. It is the cheapest way to get both.
Questions?
