PSA - Microsoft Office price increase

[Yogma]

I'm not sure how widespread (across regions) this will be, but I recently got an email from Microsoft to say that they are putting the price of Office 365 up by 50% in the new year (February).

As I suspect quite a few people here use MS Word, I just thought I would let people know to check and see if their subscriptions were about to go up.

A few months ago I was looking for an alternative to MS Word, as it produces extremely messy results if you try to pass it through a Markup translator. Luckily, a few people here recommended LibreOffice and their Writer app. Since then I've found I actually prefer writing in LO Writer compared to Word.

Initially I was going to let my Microsoft Office subscription ride, as I use Excel and Powerpoint quite a lot as part of my (real) job. However, after checking out LibreOffice Calc and Impress, I'm actually pleasantly surprised how capable they are. As a result I've now cancelled my MS Office subscription.

Just posting this in case anyone else notices their Microsoft subscriptions suddenly shooting up, and if they are, then maybe take a look at LibreOffice, you might be surprised.

 

[GemmaGemmaGemma]

There was a thread about what people use to write their stories recently and I was an MS Word girlie at the time but starting planning and writing my first big series recently and rememeber some people recommending google docs. Still getting used to it but the tab feature is so good for multiple chapter stories. Word may well be finished at this juncture, sad!

 

[TheWorldBuilder]

Subscription? Surely once you've purchased the software there are no further payments unless you decide to try a newer version? I can't remember the last time I used any MS Office products, but probably around 2008/2009. Depending on which desktop/laptop/tablet I'm using I will use OpenOffice, LibreOffice or AndrOffice.

 

[AwkwardlySet]

*Cough* pirated version *cough*

 

[HordHolm]

Subscription? Surely once you've purchased the software there are no further payments unless you decide to try a newer version? I can't remember the last time I used any MS Office products, but probably around 2008/2009. Depending on which desktop/laptop/tablet I'm using I will use OpenOffice, LibreOffice or AndrOffice.

The last time I replaced my hardware I was strongly pushed in the direction of subscription by the salesperson. I declined - I hate subscription and it feels like a hostage to fortune - and once home went online and ordered an actual disc to install the actual MS Office and own it outright. And as I did so, I realised that the next time I get new hardware that option almost certainly will no longer be available.

 

[onehitwanda]

50% is pure extortion.

 

[Jackie.Hikaru]

Well they have to afford deep throating you with copilot somehow.

 

[Yogma]

Just a point of clarification. It appears that Microsoft started rolling out the major price increase from July of this year for subscription renewals. It is just that my subscription would have been due February 2026, which is why I got the notification now.

 

[Writer61]

Subscription? Surely once you've purchased the software there are no further payments unless you decide to try a newer version? I can't remember the last time I used any MS Office products, but probably around 2008/2009. Depending on which desktop/laptop/tablet I'm using I will use OpenOffice, LibreOffice or AndrOffice.

These days it is mostly on subscription. You may be able to get a license, but it will likely lack some tools.

As my clients usually use Office, I pay the sub.

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

LibreOffice


/thread

 

[Five_Inch_Heels]

The last time I replaced my hardware I was strongly pushed in the direction of subscription by the salesperson. I declined - I hate subscription and it feels like a hostage to fortune -

I do NOT do subscription software. Period.

That's why I use Quicken 2013, the last full local install that does not require any subscription.

 

[Writer61]

There is another thing to consider. AFAIK the Office Lifetime licences only allow you to install on one computer.

So, in my case with a laptop and a desktop, I would need two licenses.

 

[alohadave]

There was a thread about what people use to write their stories recently and I was an MS Word girlie at the time but starting planning and writing my first big series recently and rememeber some people recommending google docs. Still getting used to it but the tab feature is so good for multiple chapter stories. Word may well be finished at this juncture, sad!

Keep frequent backups with Google apps, and maybe don't use your primary account to write porn.

They may decide without notice that your smutty fiction violates their rules and close your account.

Subscription? Surely once you've purchased the software there are no further payments unless you decide to try a newer version? I can't remember the last time I used any MS Office products, but probably around 2008/2009. Depending on which desktop/laptop/tablet I'm using I will use OpenOffice, LibreOffice or AndrOffice.

I don't think you can buy current versions of Office apps, it's all 365 subscription.

You can buy older versions for short money, and it's a one-time purchase. I've been using the 2016 version for many years, and I don't think there is much I'm missing.

 

[Writer61]

Keep frequent backups with Google apps, and maybe don't use your primary account to write porn.

Chrome is quite good at letting you sign in to different profiles in different windows.

 

[GemmaGemmaGemma]

Keep frequent backups with Google apps, and maybe don't use your primary account to write porn.

They may decide without notice that your smutty fiction violates their rules and close your account.

The light has gone out of my life

I like the tab feature so much but now I am scared

 

[millamomud]

50% is pure extortion.

those precious ai datacenter gpus ain't paying for themselves

 

[Writer61]

The light has gone out of my life

I like the tab feature so much but now I am scared

Two windows, one with your work account/profile and the other with your smut account.

As many tabs as you like in each.

 

[Writer61]

those precious ai datacenter gpus ain't paying for themselves

And I, for one, would like to thank you for the 34% profit I made on Nvidia shares in 2025.

 

[Actingup]

I'm not sure how widespread (across regions) this will be, but I recently got an email from Microsoft to say that they are putting the price of Office 365 up by 50% in the new year (February).

As I suspect quite a few people here use MS Word, I just thought I would let people know to check and see if their subscriptions were about to go up.

A few months ago I was looking for an alternative to MS Word, as it produces extremely messy results if you try to pass it through a Markup translator. Luckily, a few people here recommended LibreOffice and their Writer app. Since then I've found I actually prefer writing in LO Writer compared to Word.

Initially I was going to let my Microsoft Office subscription ride, as I use Excel and Powerpoint quite a lot as part of my (real) job. However, after checking out LibreOffice Calc and Impress, I'm actually pleasantly surprised how capable they are. As a result I've now cancelled my MS Office subscription.

Just posting this in case anyone else notices their Microsoft subscriptions suddenly shooting up, and if they are, then maybe take a look at LibreOffice, you might be surprised.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is running a prosecution against them in Australia for misleading customers on this one. See if you can find a 'classic subscription' option that removes copilot.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-11...ers-for-365-subscription-price-hike/105977094
https://www.smh.com.au/business/con...t-refund-offer-backfires-20251105-p5n83b.html

"Microsoft has apologised to customers and said it will refund them, after the consumer watchdog alleged the tech giant misled about 2.7 million Australians over subscription costs so they would remain on more expensive plans. The company wrote to customers on Thursday to apologise to those affected, saying it "fell short of our standards" and could have "communicated more clearly when we changed our pricing in October 2024".

 

[CalBishForNow]

I'm running Microsoft Office 2021 with a legitimate license, and not a subscription-based model, just something running off my hard drive that works whether I'm online or not. Don't ask me how I found the software, it was challenging to find the right option when I bought it and that was a few years ago now, but it was possible with a version of Word that recent. It may still be possible if you look hard enough.

 

[Writer61]

I'm running Microsoft Office 2021 with a legitimate license, and not a subscription-based model, just something running off my hard drive that works whether I'm online or not. Don't ask me how I found the software, it was challenging to find the right option when I bought it and that was a few years ago now, but it was possible with a version of Word that recent. It may still be possible if you look hard enough.

I think it is possible to buy a license for the 2024 version.

 

[Yogma]

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is running a prosecution against them in Australia for misleading customers on this one. See if you can find a 'classic subscription' option that removes copilot.

Thanks Actingup.
But its too late for me, I've already moved on to greener fields

 

[onehitwanda]

I like LaTeX all the more these days.

 

[GemmaGemmaGemma]

Two windows, one with your work account/profile and the other with your smut account.

As many tabs as you like in each.

I've got the fear that they are now watching my every move and they're going to delete all my accounts, but I figured out how to back it up easily after each writing session so we are officially back

 

[MrPixel]

MS (and Adobe) can kiss my ass as far as leaseware is concerned. I have the last versions of both major packages as they existed in shrinkwrap, which do not work with MacOS. I boot into an old OSX if it's imperative I use the real thing. So I have alternatives, which are just fine for what I do.

The only subscription software I run is a music composition package, Sebelius, and that's only because I really can't justify the cost of the perpetual license version for as little as I do in it.