I just bought office 2021 and appears as MS 365 icons. are they the same thing

Hi Todd H!

I am Shakiru, an independent advisor and a user like you, and I am glad to be helping you out today.

No, Office 2021 and Microsoft 365 are not the same. Here's the breakdown:

Let me take you through some of the features of Office 2021 and Microsoft 365.

Office 2021:

• One-time purchase: You pay a single fee for a perpetual license and install it on a single PC.
• Includes essential apps: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote.
• Lacks the advanced features and functionalities found in Microsoft 365 versions.
• No cloud storage. That is, no OneDrive is included

Microsoft 365:

• Subscription-based: You pay a recurring monthly or yearly fee for access to the apps and services.
• Offers additional services like Outlook, OneDrive cloud storage, Teams communication platform, and advanced features in the Office apps.
• You automatically receive the latest features and security updates.
• You can install the apps on multiple devices (depending on your plan).

Please let me know if you need any other assistance and I will be more than happy to help further.

Thank you

Best Regards, Shakiru

Hi Todd, not sure where you are with this.

1. You purchased Microsoft Home and Student 2021?
2. How much did you pay? (same as in the link I posted above?)
3. Open an App, e.g. Word>File>Account>On this page it will say exactly which version of Office is installed.
4. Post a copy of the icon that you are worried about. To do this>Press on>Shift Key + Windows Key + S The screen will darken>With your mouse draw round the icon. Let go of the mouse. Come onto the Forum and paste>Control + V

Hi Shakiru, It appears from Microsoft support page that the program is the same whether purchased as Office 2021 or as Microsoft 365. The only difference is the ongoing support, updates, and subscription cost. Here is verbage from their site.

Office 2021is sold as aone-time purchase, which means you pay a single, up-front cost to get Microsoft 365 apps for one computer. One-time purchases are available for both PCs and Macs. However, there are no upgrade options, which means if you plan to upgrade to the next major release, you'll have to buy it at full price.

What's the difference between Microsoft 365 and Office 2021? - Microsoft Support

Thanks for you input

Todd

Hi Todd, No Microsoft Office Home and Student 2021 is not the same as Microsoft 365. Buy Office Home & Student 2021 (PC or Mac) – Download & Pricing (microsoft.com)

Not sure where you are looking for the Office Icon. On Settings>Apps it looks like this: and at Control Panel:

Word Icon looks like:

Microsoft Office Home & Student 2021 is a one time payment version of Office. Microsoft 365 Personal/Family is a subscription version of Office, so you pay every month forever.

Hi Shakiru,

I had office home & student 2016 on a previous laptop. I purchased a new laptop. Tried to transfer the program and had difficulty. So I figured I would just buy the latest home & student 2021. Purchased on-line and downloaded. After install the welcome screen and the icon on the task manager bar indicates Microsoft 365. I really don't want a subscription based product as it is just for home use. I am really frustrated trying to figure this out. Any help you can provide is appreciated.

Thanks,

Todd