Office is the office suite par excellence. All of us who have used a computer have ever used Word, Excel or PowerPoint (among other programs), either for personal use or at work. Despite there being many alternatives, these programs are the most widespread both at home and in professional settings. This suite has always been linked to a specific version, such as 2019, 2019 or 2021. However, lately a specific version of the suite is gaining popularity that, in the future, will end all other versions: Office 365 .
What is Office 365?
Microsoft 365 , or Office 365, is Microsoft’s plan to offer us its office suite as a service . That is, instead of having to pay for a full license, which is quite expensive, to be able to use their programs, we can save money by paying a subscription. In this way, as long as we pay we can make unlimited use of the suite, while, if we stop paying (something we can do at any time), we simply cannot use the programs.
One of the advantages of using Office 365 is that we will always have the latest version of the programs. No more thinking about version 2016, 2019, 2021 … Word, Excel and other applications in the suite will appear with the suffix “365”, they will be updated to the latest version and will always have the latest improvements and new features implemented by Microsoft. In addition, we will be able to use these programs from mobile phones or tablets, something that we cannot with the normal edition. And, to all that, we must add the additional services included in the suite (especially OneDrive storage).
The main drawback is that the suite never becomes ours. If we pay for the normal license, although we do not have the right to update to newer versions, the license is ours, and we can always use it without paying anything else. The moment we stop paying for 365, we will no longer be able to use the programs. Another drawback is that we will probably be paying for services that we do not use. Most likely, we will not make Skype calls, nor will we use Access or Publisher. And, by paying the subscription, we are paying for all of it.
Programs and services included in Microsoft 365
When we pay for this subscription, the suite includes by default the main Office programs: Word , Excel and PowerPoint . These programs are always updated to the latest version (we can forget about versions like 2019 or 2021), and it even gives us access to the Insider development branch, from which we can test the new features before anyone else. In addition to the standard programs, we will also be able to make use of other tools, such as OneNote and Outlook , to manage our mail, take notes and be more productive. If we use databases, the subscription also allows us to use Access . And if ours are layouts, from Microsoft Publisher .
Another service included in the Office 365 subscription is 1 TB of storage (per user) in OneDrive , the company’s cloud. In this way, we can use this cloud to share files with other people or save backup copies of our most important files. The subscription also gives us access to the personal store, a protected space, with double encryption, where we store our most sensitive data. It also gives us 60 minutes a month to make calls on Skype .
Microsoft 365 allows us to use its programs and services on both Windows and macOS. In addition, it is the only version that allows us to use Word, Excel and PowerPoint on Android and iOS.
| Office 2019/2021 | office 365 | |
|---|---|---|
| Availability | Office 2019/2021 PC Only | Office 365 Windows, macOS, mobile |
| Extra services | Office 2019/2021 No | Office 365 1 TB on OneDrive, 60 min / month with Skype |
| Upgrades | Office 2019/2021 Version Only | Office 365 Always up to date |
| Technical support | Office 2019/2021 60 days | Office 365 Always |
| Price | Office 2019/2021 150 euros, one-time payment | Office 365 69 euros per year (Personal – 1 user) 99 euros per year (Home – 5 users) |
Price: where to buy Office cheaper?
Instead of having to pay 150 euros for a specific version, which is only valid for a PC, Office 365 has much more affordable prices. We can choose between two different types of subscription. The first one is the personal edition. For a price of 69 euros per year (or 7 euros per month) we will be able to enjoy all the advantages of this license for a single user. And, on the other hand, for 99 euros a year , or 10 a month, we can buy the Family edition. This allows us to share the subscription with 5 other people (6 in total) so that each one can use the Office programs, and have 1 TB of storage for them, without paying anything more.
Although 69 and 99 are the official prices for Microsoft editions, there are ways you can buy Office 365 much cheaper . On Amazon, for example, we can often find offers (Prime Day, Black Friday, etc.) that allow us to buy the personal edition for 52 euros, and the Family one for less than 50 euros. The saving, in this way, is more than considerable.
In addition, we can use key resale websites that allow us to get Office 365 (although in its modality for companies) for about 10 euros. The problem with these types of keys is that we do not have control over the account, or the cloud, and it can give us problems.
Download, install, or update Office
Once we pay for the subscription, we can download the programs from this link . We simply have to click on ” Install Office ” to download the corresponding installer that will automatically download the latest versions of the programs and install them on our PC.
By clicking on this button we will have the possibility to customize the installer that we want to download. We can choose the language in which we want the programs to be installed, and if we want to download the 32-bit or 64-bit version of the Office programs. In addition, we can also check a box that will appear at the bottom that allows us to download an offline installer. This includes the 32-bit and 64-bit versions, and allows us to install the programs on any PC without a connection, although we will have to be connected to be able to activate the programs.
The problem with this installer is that it downloads and installs all the programs in the suite. If we only want Word and Excel, for example, we will not be able to install them separately. We will also have to install Publisher, OneNote and Access, even if we don’t want them.
Office 365 programs are intended to update periodically automatically . Therefore, at first we do not have to worry about it. However, if we want, we can force an update, or disable updates, from any of the programs. To do this, just open the Office program you want, and enter the Account section.
Here we will find the details of the license, and also the upgrade options.
If we click on the ” Update now ” button, we will connect to Microsoft’s servers, download the latest version and install it on our PC. The safest thing is that we already have Office updated, so we will not have to worry about it.
In case of not wanting the program to be updated, we simply have to choose the option “Disable updates”. Office 365 will no longer update automatically, but we can continue to update programs manually.
Control your Microsoft 365 subscription
Everything related to Office subscriptions and services can be consulted from the Microsoft account panel, which we can access from here .
When the Office 365 account expires
When our subscription is about to end, Microsoft usually sends us different emails in which it warns us that we have little time left. These emails allow us to renew on time, before it is too late, so as not to stop using the office suite for a single moment.
However, from our Microsoft panel we will be able to check the status of our subscription at any time. To do this, we will enter the profile and click on the link ” Manage Microsoft 365 ” that appears to the right of our user.
In the new page that the program will open, we will be able to see the status of our subscription. We can see the type of subscription we have (annual or monthly) and what will be the date of the next charge. This will be the date our Office 365 will expire. The day before will be the last day in which we will have to decide whether or not we want to renew the Microsoft subscription.
If we do nothing, the subscription will automatically renew on that day. Therefore, if we want to avoid unnecessary disappointments, it is best to cancel the automatic renewal.
How to cancel or unsubscribe
If we do not plan to continue using this suite, the best we can do is unsubscribe. By canceling Office 365 we will lose the right to use the suite programs, and access to all the services that this service offers us. In the case of OneDrive, for example, we will return to the free 15 GB, and the files that occupy more than those 15 GB will be frozen for a while, to be able to download them, before being deleted.
To unsubscribe Microsoft 365, from the ” Manage Microsoft 365 ” section that we have seen in the previous point, we will click on the “Manage” button, which is below the renewal date button, and we will see a new panel like the next.
If we click on the button ” Cancel subscription ” we can cancel the automatic renewal. We will be able to see a new page in which it will indicate us the advantages that we lose, and it will invite us to pass to the monthly payment, instead of the annual one, to avoid paying more. Likewise, if we are not interested in anything, we can cancel everything.
The “Change” link allows us to quickly change between monthly or annual modality, or directly deactivate automatic renewal. We can also change the automatic payment method, or activate an Office 365 prepaid card to extend the subscription without paying more.
In the event that the subscription is less than 30 days old, when canceling it we can request a refund of the money, to avoid payments for dismissal. Otherwise, by canceling the subscription, we will be able to continue using the benefits of Office 365 until the end of subscription date.
Share Office 365 with family or friends
The main advantage of using Office 365 is being able to share the subscription with relatives (or not so familiar, that depends on each one). The Family edition of Office 365 allows us to share the subscription with 6 people (us, and another 5 more) so that the programs, and OneDrive storage, are much cheaper by dividing the total price by 6.
To share the subscription, what we must do is create a family group. To do this, we access the following link and, from there, we will be able to start sharing the subscription and manage the entire family group.
We can click on “Start Sharing” to share the subscription with another person. We can choose if we want to invite the other person to join us by email or by means of a link. If we know the email (especially if it is from Outlook) we can invite her directly from it. Otherwise, we can generate the link and send it to you, for example, by WhatsApp.
When the other person joins, we will have to accept it so that it becomes part of the family group. Once you are inside, you can start enjoying all the benefits of Office 365. Your data (from OneDrive, for example) will always be isolated and private, unless you voluntarily decide to share it.
