Buying guide

Which Office version should you buy?

Office 2021, 2024 or Microsoft 365? A practical guide to picking the right Office edition by use case, hardware and budget.

The short answer

If you're buying Office today and your PC is reasonably modern (Windows 10 or 11), get Office 2024 Pro Plus. It's the newest perpetual release, ships every Microsoft 365 feature backport from 2021 through 2024, and costs a fraction of MSRP at €34.90 on this site.

If you need cloud storage and multiple devices for a family, pick Microsoft 365 Family — 6 users, 1 TB OneDrive each.

If you're already standardised on Office 2021, the 2021 Pro Plus key is still in stock at an even lower price.

By use case

Different users get different value from each edition. Here's how to match an edition to your real workflow.

· Solo freelancer on Windows → Office 2024 Pro Plus 1-PC. All 7 apps, lifetime, €34.90.
· Family of 4 sharing files → Microsoft 365 Family. 1 TB per user, runs on phones and tablets too.
· Small office with 5 PCs → Office 2024 Pro Plus 5-PC pack. €69.90 total — about €14 per seat.
· Mac user who needs Outlook → Office Home & Business 2024 — Mac.
· Student / personal use only → Office 2024 Home & Student. Word + Excel + PowerPoint.
· IT shop standardized on 2021 → Office 2021 Pro Plus account-bound (transferable).

Perpetual vs subscription — the long-term math

A perpetual Office 2024 license costs you once and stays valid forever on the licensed device. Microsoft 365 is a yearly subscription that stops working when you stop paying.

Over a 5-year horizon, a single perpetual license costs ~€35 total. A Microsoft 365 Personal subscription costs roughly €85 × 5 = €425. M365 Family at €109 × 5 = €545.

Subscription wins only if you genuinely use the cloud storage (1 TB OneDrive per user), cross-device sync, or share with multiple people.

Edition lineup at a glance

Microsoft sells Office in three tiers — Home & Student (3 apps), Home & Business (4 apps with Outlook), and Pro Plus (the full 7-app suite).

Pro Plus is the volume-licensed edition normally reserved for enterprise customers. We sell it because the per-seat price drops dramatically at volume tier and the apps are identical to retail Pro.