A few weeks ago, Microsoft announced Office 2021, the next major version of the Office suite. Office 2021 will be released on October 5, 2021, in parallel with the official release of Windows 11.
Today, Microsoft unveiled the pricing and new features of Office 2021.
Office 2021 will be available in two versions:
Office Home and Student 2021 in $ 149,99. Office Home and Student 2021 gives users access to the applications: Word, Excel, Power point, OneNote and Microsoft Teams for Windows and macOS systems.
Microsoft promotes this SKU to users who need Office applications for training and / or home use.
Office Home and Business 2021 in $ 249,99. This SKU enables shoppers to use Office for commercial purposes. Office Home and Business 2021 includes all the applications mentioned above, as well as Outlook for Windows and macOS.
In terms of new features, Office 2021 offers some features, which are already available to its subscribers Microsoft 365.
It will have a modern design similar to Windows 11, it will have improved features pluswork, Microsoft Teams integration, built-in translator, etc. Office 2021 also updates the OpenDocument Format (ODF) to version 1.3 for better compatibility.
You can find the list of all the new features of Office 2021 here.
If you are planning to buy an Office license, you need to know a few things.
First, to run Office 2021, Microsoft requires a relatively modern PC with Windows 10 or Windows 11. Older systems such as Windows 7 or Windows 8. As for macOS, Office 2021 will run on: Big Sur, Catalina and Mojave.
Second, standalone Office applications do not receive new features during their life cycle.
Microsoft reserves this privilege for users who are willing to pay for a Microsoft 365 subscription.
Finally, the company says Windows 11 won't support Office 2013, meaning those with the old app will have to upgrade or go to Microsoft 365 subscription.