Microsoft Office has been a stalwart for businesses for decades. The majority of businesses use the software in some capacity. Outlook to manage your emails, Word to construct reports or Excel to keep financial records. Each application offers something different but all are critical to how you operate your business. With Microsoft products growing you now have the option to either purchase the relatively new Office 365 or go with the more standard Office suite, the latest being 2019. However, what option is best for your business?

What’s The Difference?

Office 365 is a cloud based product that gives you access to the regular Office suite products. Rather than paying for the product up front, you pay an ongoing monthly or annual subscription to use the software. Office 2019 is a licensed product that is charged at a one off fee. Again, it offers all of the regular apps but if Microsoft release an updated version, say Office 2022, you will need to pay the one off fee again to get the upgrade.

Advantages of 365

There are numerous benefits to 365. Here are some of them:

• Free updates – With 365 being an ongoing subscription, you will always have access to the latest version of the product.
• Real time edits – Due to 365 being a cloud based product, users can edit the same document at the same time. This means no waiting about whilst someone else uses the document
• One license, multiple devices – A subscription with 365 allows you to use the software on up to 5 devices. So you can access your docs in the office, at home on your laptop or on the move from your mobile.

Benefits of 2019

Likewise, there are benefits to 2019 that may suit you better. Here are just a few:

• One fee – When purchasing 2019 you only need to pay for the software once. This then lasts until you wish to upgrade the software or the software becomes unsupported.
• Updated features – 2019 has updated features from the last version, 2016.
• Free support – When you purchase 2019 you will get 60 days free support from Microsoft. Should be able to help you through any teething issues or initial queries when using the software.

What suits you best?

It is now up to you to decide which version of Office suits your business best. Smaller businesses might benefit more from the one off payment. Larger businesses might be more suited to the lower ongoing payments.

Office 2019 is one license which can be used on one computer. One subscription with 365 gives you the ability to use the software on 5 different devices. This means you won’t be restricted to office hours to do your work. This means your staff can be more productive and they can also work on the same documents at the same time thanks to real time editing.

With Office 365 you always have the most up to date version which keeps your business up to standard. Office 2019 is a one off payment and when Microsoft decide to upgrade the product you will need to shell out on this too.

Taking all of this into account, you’re definitely pointed in the direction of 365 and Microsoft are certainly pushing you in that direction. If you need any pointers on which is best for your company then please get in touch and we can certainly give our opinion.

Thanks,
David Early
Central Computer Support