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Office 2021 vs. Microsoft 365

Office 2021 launched alongside Windows 11 in the month of October 2021. This is the most current version of Microsoft’s 30-year-old productivity suite. If you go to the Microsoft site, you’ll find that they’re also providing Microsoft 365.

You may be thinking, “Why is Microsoft offering two versions of the same software?” So, to clarify your doubts Here’s the full breakdown of Microsoft 365 with Office 2021.

One-Time Purchase in contrast to. Subscription

Office 2021 will be the single purchase version of Microsoft’s Office suite. It is available in two versions: Home & Student 2021 and Home & Business 2021. The first, at $149.99 includes version for desktops that include Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote and the second priced at $249.99 includes Outlook in the mix.

This Home & Business 2021 license allows you to utilize the apps for company use.

Microsoft 365, the subscription-based office suite, is also available with two plans which are Personal and Family. The Personal plan is priced at $69.99 each year (or $6.99 per month) The Family option is $99.99 annually (or $9.99 each month).

The initial cost on both variants of Office 2021 is significantly higher than Microsoft 365’s services. But, as it’s a single purchase, you’ll only have to pay on the application once. However you’ll need be paying the $69.99 annual fee if you’re opting for Microsoft 365 Personal.

In only two years, you’d have paid more than if you had chosen Microsoft 365 Personal over Office Home & Student 2021. If you choose Microsoft 365 Family instead, Microsoft 365 Family plan and you have six members sharing it and you just $16.67 per person. It will take at most 9 years to get the price that you pay for Microsoft 365 to equal the cost of a similar amount of Office 2021 licenses.

Classic Vs. Premium Versions

If you select cheap Office 2021, then you’ll receive the 2021 versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook (included with Microsoft’s Home & Business version). However, if you choose Microsoft 365, you will be able to download the 365 versions these applications.

What’s the main differences in these two applications? At present, there’s no big difference regarding features particularly due to the fact that Office 2021 was just recently launched.

But in the Classic 2021 edition there will be no additional updates or features in the near future. What you can see now is the version you’ll receive. In contrast with the Premium version of 365 it is possible to update your installed apps each time Microsoft announces an update or a new feature.

For instance, Excel 365 received the XLOOKUP function in August of 2019. However, if you’re using the version for 2019 of Microsoft Excel, you won’t have the ability to utilize this function at all. You will only be able to access it on the more recent Excel 2021 edition.

Additional Applications and Services

In addition to Word, Excel, PowerPoint along with OneNote With Microsoft 365, you’ll also have accessibility to Skype along with OneDrive. With Skype you’ll get an annual amount of calls to international destinations up to 60 minutes. For OneDrive You get 1TB of storage for each individual user. For example, if your family’s account is used by six people You will receive six TB cloud space.

A 365 subscription includes Microsoft Access and Publisher when you download it. If you’re using these applications, you need to think about purchasing 365 instead.

Additionally you can also use Microsoft 365, each person can download all Office apps on up five distinct devices of any kind.

Also, if you own an MacBook as well as the desktop Windows PC or an iPhone or an Android device, or an iPad and an iPad, you can download the Office suite to all of these devices without spending additional.

In addition, if you are on an extended family plan that includes six people, you can download the entire suite of Microsoft 365 apps on up to 30 devices.

Further Microsoft 365 Benefits

Apart from the applications and services that you can avail over the top, Microsoft 365 users also have access to a variety of options. Microsoft 365 allows you to add royalty-free content directly, such as images, icons fonts, templates and many more.

Additionally, you can avail AI-powered tools like those in the PowerPoint Presentation Coach, the Resume Assistant Designer and Ideas. These features add value to your life easier , by making use of AI to assist you in getting things done quickly.

For instance, Word can detect if you’re writing a resume, and provide templates to help you improve the quality of your resume. Ideas can suggest layouts and images when creating an outline. Also, Designer assists you in choosing the best the right format that you can use in your Word document, and ensures it’s uniform across every page.

Do you think Microsoft 365 the better option?

After you’ve listed all the advantages you will get from Microsoft 365 over Office 2021 it’s easy to conclude that choosing the latter is an easy option. But, it’s not that simple.

If you’re a person who keeps an electronic device for a period of two years or more and don’t require cloud storage, and just utilize the basics in Word, Excel, and PowerPoint and Excel, then you’re better off to Office 2021. This version is ideal for those who are young or retired who do not often use these applications and aren’t typically online.

Professionals who have company-owned devices can decide to go with the option of purchasing a single device, particularly when they do not use these apps beyond their job.

If you are able to join at least two people that will use the Microsoft 365 plan for at least three years, you’re probably better off with the plan with subscription.

This is because you’ll pay $150 over the course of three years that’s the same price you’ll pay if opt for the single purchase Office Home & Student 2021. With this plan you’ll also get advantages, such as Cloud storage and international calling, and many more.

The truth is That Simple

Before you decide on one over another because you’re looking for all the additional features, or you don’t want to pay for subscriptions, contemplate the options. Consider, “Which one offers the best value for my money?” After all, like various other areas of your life, there’s not a one size fits all solution.

If you’ve thought about your needs and what you’d utilize the office suite for, the features are essential to you and what options are available, you’re able to make the best choice that fits your preferences.