Office 2024 vs Microsoft 365: Which Is Right for Your Small Business?
If you run a small business, sooner or later you have to decide how you will pay for Word, Excel, Outlook and the rest of the Office apps. Microsoft gives you two very different routes: buy Office 2024 once and keep it, or subscribe to Microsoft 365 and pay monthly or yearly.
Neither option is “better” for everyone. The right choice depends on how many people you have, how you share files, whether you need business email, and how much you value a predictable one-time cost. This guide walks through the differences in plain language, explains what each Office 2024 edition includes, covers the support dates you need to know, and ends with a simple way to decide.
The short answer
Choose Office 2024 if you want the classic desktop apps on a specific computer, you are happy to save files locally or in storage you already pay for, and you would rather pay once than keep paying.- Choose Microsoft 365 if you want business email on your own domain, cloud storage for every user, Teams for chat and meetings, apps on several devices per person, and the latest features as they ship.
Many small businesses mix the two. For example, a front-desk PC might run Office 2024 while owners and remote staff use Microsoft 365.
One-time purchase vs subscription: how they really differ
Microsoft’s own comparison describes the difference like this:
Office 2024 (one-time purchase)
- You pay a single, up-front cost.
- Your product page lists the device and activation details.
- You get security updates, but no new features, and upgrades to the next major release are not included. If you want the next version later, you buy it again at full price.
- No extra cloud storage is included.
- Internet access is needed to install and activate. After that, the apps work offline, but Office 2024 asks to reactivate from time to time, and hardware changes can trigger a reactivation too.
Microsoft 365 (subscription)
- You pay monthly, or commit to a year.
- You always get the latest versions of the apps, with new features, security updates and bug fixes as they come out.
- Business plans add services on top of the apps, such as business email, OneDrive cloud storage and Microsoft Teams, depending on the plan.
- You need to connect to the internet regularly. Microsoft notes that if a subscription install does not go online at least once a month, the apps drop into reduced functionality mode until you sign in again.
In other words, Office 2024 is a product you own a license to, and Microsoft 365 is a service you keep paying for.
What’s included in each Office 2024 edition
Office 2024 comes in several editions. Here is what Microsoft lists for each.
Office Home 2024
- Classic desktop versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote
- Available for Windows and Mac
- Marked by Microsoft as for non-commercial use
Because it is not licensed for commercial use and does not include Outlook, Office Home 2024 is generally not the right fit for a business. It is aimed at students and families.
Office Home & Business 2024
- Classic desktop versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and OneNote
- Available for Windows and Mac
- Licensed for use at home or work
- Works with Microsoft Teams (Teams itself is separate)
This is the edition Microsoft positions for small businesses that want the classic apps plus Outlook for email. It is available for both Windows and Mac.
Shop: Office 2024 Home & Business for Windows | Office 2024 Home & Business for Mac
Office 2024 Professional Plus (Office LTSC Professional Plus 2024)
Microsoft documents Professional Plus under the “Office LTSC 2024” name. According to Microsoft, it includes:
- Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote and Access
- It is a Windows edition (Access is not available on macOS)
- It does not include Publisher (Microsoft has since retired Publisher)
- Teams is not preinstalled but can be downloaded separately
- Like all Office LTSC 2024 products, it does not receive new features after launch
Professional Plus makes sense if your business relies on Access databases, or you simply want the fullest classic desktop suite on a Windows PC.
Shop: Microsoft Office 2024 Professional Plus
If you also need project scheduling or diagramming, there are bundles that pair Professional Plus with Project 2024 Professional and Visio 2024 Professional: Office 2024 Pro Plus + Project 2024 + Visio 2024 bundle.
Office 2024 Standard (Office LTSC Standard 2024)
Standard is the smaller sibling of Professional Plus in the Office LTSC 2024 family and follows the same support dates. Check the product page for the exact apps included before you buy.
Shop: Office 2024 Standard for Windows
You can browse every edition in our Microsoft Office 2024 category.
What Microsoft 365 business plans include
Microsoft’s business plans are built for organizations with up to 300 users. The main options are:
Microsoft 365 Business Basic: web and mobile versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook, plus business email, cloud storage and Teams. There are no desktop apps in this plan.- Microsoft 365 Apps for business: desktop versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook, with 1 TB of OneDrive storage per user. It is mainly the apps and storage, without the full set of business services.
- Microsoft 365 Business Standard: desktop, web and mobile versions of the apps, custom business email (you@yourbusiness.com), 1 TB of cloud storage per user, Teams, and extra apps such as Bookings, Planner and Forms.
- Microsoft 365 Business Premium: everything in Business Standard, plus advanced threat protection and device management for company devices.
Microsoft also sells versions of these plans with Copilot AI features built in, and versions without Teams.
A few practical points from Microsoft’s FAQ:
- You can choose a monthly commitment (cancel any time) or an annual commitment (paid monthly or up front). Annual commitments can carry penalties or no refund if cancelled early.
- If you cancel, your administrator can still reach the account’s data for 90 days in a limited-function account, so export what you need first.
- You can switch plans as your business changes.
Shop: Microsoft 365 Business Standard | All Microsoft 365 plans
Support lifecycle: how long will each option be supported?
Support dates matter, because once a product stops getting security updates, it becomes a risk to keep using it on a business network.
| Product | Lifecycle policy | Support ends |
|---|---|---|
| Office Home 2024 and Office Home & Business 2024 | Modern Lifecycle Policy | October 9, 2029 (last day of support) |
| Office LTSC Professional Plus 2024 and Office LTSC Standard 2024 | Fixed Lifecycle Policy | October 9, 2029 (last day of mainstream support, with no extended support after that) |
| Microsoft 365 (subscription) | Continuously updated | Supported while your subscription is active and you stay on a supported version |
So whichever Office 2024 edition you buy, you have security updates through October 9, 2029. After that date, you would need to move to a newer version or to Microsoft 365.
Two related dates worth knowing
- Office 2021 support ended on October 13, 2026. If you are still on Office 2021, or the even older Office 2019 or 2016 (also out of support), now is a good time to plan your move.
- Windows 10 matters too. Windows 10 support ended on October 14, 2025. Microsoft says Office 2024 and Office 2021 still run on Windows 10 but are no longer supported there. For Microsoft 365 Apps, Microsoft is continuing security updates on Windows 10 through October 10, 2028. To stay in a fully supported setup, Microsoft recommends Windows 11. If you have PCs to move, see our Windows 10 to Windows 11 Pro upgrade guide.
Side-by-side comparison
| Office Home & Business 2024 | Office 2024 Professional Plus | Microsoft 365 Business Standard | |
|---|---|---|---|
| How you pay | Once | Once | Monthly or yearly |
| Desktop apps | Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote | Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, Access | Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and more (always latest) |
| Platforms | Windows or Mac | Windows | Windows, Mac, web and mobile |
| Devices | Per product page | Per product page | Multiple devices per user |
| New features | No (security updates only) | No (security updates only) | Yes, ongoing |
| Business email on your domain | No | No | Yes |
| Cloud storage | Not included | Not included | 1 TB per user |
| Teams | Works with Teams (separate) | Separate download | Included |
| Last day of support | Oct 9, 2029 | Oct 9, 2029 | Ongoing with subscription |
Who should pick Office 2024?
Office 2024 is usually the better fit if:
- You have a small, stable team and each person works mainly on one computer.
- You want a predictable, one-time cost and prefer not to manage recurring renewals.
- You already have email and file storage sorted, for example through your web host or another provider.
- You don’t need the newest features. Many businesses just need Word, Excel and Outlook to work reliably for years.
- You need Access on Windows, in which case Professional Plus is the edition to look at.
- You have shared or single-purpose PCs such as a reception desk, a shop counter or a warehouse station.
Who should pick Microsoft 365?
Microsoft 365 is usually the better fit if:
- You want professional email on your own domain, managed in one place.
- Your team works from several devices, such as an office PC, a laptop and a phone.
- You collaborate on files in real time and want shared storage in OneDrive and SharePoint.
- You use Teams for chat, calls and meetings.
- You want admin controls and security tools, especially with Business Premium’s device management and threat protection.
- You are growing and want to add or remove users without buying new licenses each time.
A simple way to decide
Ask yourself three questions:
Do we need business email, shared cloud storage or Teams from Microsoft?
If yes, Microsoft 365 is the natural choice.Does each person mostly work on one computer, and are we happy without new features through October 2029?
If yes, Office 2024 can save you from an ongoing bill.Do we need Access?
If yes and you are on Windows, look at Office 2024 Professional Plus.
If you are still unsure, it is fine to mix and match. Use Microsoft 365 for the people who need email, cloud storage and collaboration, and Office 2024 on the PCs that just need the apps.
Solved IT Services
Shop Office 2024 and Microsoft 365
Frequently asked questions
Yes. Office 2024 is sold as a one-time purchase: you pay once rather than subscribing. Your product page lists the device and activation details. It gets security updates but no new features, and moving to the next major version means buying it again.
Microsoft lists Office Home 2024 as for non-commercial use, and it does not include Outlook. For business use, Office Home & Business 2024, Office 2024 Professional Plus or a Microsoft 365 business plan are the editions to consider.
Home & Business 2024 includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and OneNote and is available for Windows or Mac. Professional Plus adds Access and is a Windows edition.
October 9, 2029 is the last day of support for Office Home 2024, Office Home & Business 2024, and the Office LTSC 2024 editions (Professional Plus and Standard), based on Microsoft’s lifecycle pages. Office LTSC 2024 has no extended support after that date.
No. Office 2024 is the desktop apps only. Cloud storage and business email on your own domain come with Microsoft 365 plans such as Business Standard.
Yes, after it is installed and activated. You need internet access to install and activate it, and Office 2024 asks you to reactivate from time to time, so it needs to go online occasionally.
Ready to choose?
If a one-time purchase suits your business, browse our Microsoft Office 2024 range, including Home & Business and Professional Plus. If you would rather subscribe, take a look at Microsoft 365 Business Standard.
Not sure which edition fits? Contact our team and tell us how many people you have and what you use Office for, and we will point you to the right option.