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How to get Office 2010 at a rock-bottom price

By | May 4, 2010, 4:00am PDT

If you’re considering an Office 2010 upgrade, be sure you learn the lesson of Windows 7. Microsoft offers its best prices to early adopters. Those who wait pay more.

Here’s a recap of what you could have taken advantage of last summer, after Windows 7 was released to manufacturing but before it was available for retail sales. Microsoft offered “screaming deals” on upgrades (”a special, time-limited offer”)—a  mere $50 for Windows 7 Home Premium and $100 for Windows 7 Professional. There was also a three-license Family Pack of Home Premium for $149 that sold out about six weeks after the retail launch date, and a special $30 upgrade offer for college students ended around the beginning of the year.

None of those deals have been repeated. Those who waited paid more. The current prices for retail upgrade versions of Windows 7 Home Premium and Professional at Newegg.com are $110 and $176, respectively.

So what’s the best price you can get now on Office 2010? The biggest wrinkle, as I noted in my Prices, packaging, dates, and other details post, is that Microsoft has dropped upgrade prices completely. One price fits all in the Office 2010 era. So the challenge now is to seek out the best current price and then decide whether you’ll be able to do better.

Your best friend in this process is the Office 2010 Technology Guarantee program, which qualifies you for a free update to Office 2010 if you buy Office 2007 today. There are some great deals to be found there because of some quirks in the transition to the new line-up. (With Office 2010, Microsoft has dropped the Ultimate and Enterprise editions and the OEM-only Basic edition. As a result, the upgrade matrix has some interesting bargains.)  I’ll get to the rules and restrictions of the Tech Guarantee program on the next page, but first, here’s how to shop smart. (Note: All details are extracted from this FAQ page and apply only to the United States.)

Update: In the Talkback section, a reader points out the “Military Appreciation” edition of Office Standard 2007, which costs $70 and can be upgraded free via the Technology Guarantee to Office Home and Business 2010. More details are here.

If you want Office Professional 2010…

Est. retail price: $499 full/$349 key card
Best deal today: $237 (Newegg)
Savings: 32-53%

You can buy any version of Office Ultimate 2007, Office Professional 2007, or Office Small Business 2007 today and you qualify for an upgrade to Office Professional 2010, which is the top of the Office 2010 retail line. (There is no Ultimate edition in the Office 2010 family.)

Assuming you already own a qualifying edition of Office, the best deal to be found is an upgrade package of Office 2007 Small Business Edition. I found it for $237 at Newegg. That includes the right to install on a primary PC and a secondary, portable PC. If you don’t qualify for an upgrade, the selling price for the full version is $370.

If you want Office Home and Business 2010…

Est. retail price: $279 full/$199 key card
Best deal today: $199 (Newegg)
Savings: 0-28%

This version is ideal for small businesses and includes Outlook. Either Office Standard 2007 or Office Basic 2007 qualifies for an upgrade to this edition. However, Office Basic is only available as an OEM product, so through the retail channel you’re stuck with Standard edition. I found the upgrade version at Newegg for $200. That’s the same price as the key card but includes two installs.

If you want Office Home and Student 2010…

Est. retail price: $149 full/$119 key card
Best deal today: $100 (bhphoto.com)
Savings: 0-33%

If you buy a retail copy of Office Home and Student 2007, you qualify for an upgrade to the equivalent version of Office 2010, which can be installed on up to three PCs in a single household. I’ve seen sub-$100 prices on the 2007 version in the past, but the best I can find today is $120 from Newegg. (And that’s for the full edition; the current Home and Student lineup does not support upgrades.) [Update: A rep from B&H Photo advises that they have the product in stock for $100.] That’s a discount of 33%. And don’t be fooled by the discount on the key card. It is not a good deal That key card is good for only one installation, whereas the retail box permits three installs.

Next: Awesome student discounts, disappointing OEM prices –>

More from “The Ed Bott Report”

Topics

Office 2010, Upgrade, Bargains, Action Pack Subscription, Academic Copy, Microsoft Office, Office Suites, Software, MSDN, TechNet, Ed Bott

Ed Bott is an award-winning technology writer with more than two decades' experience writing for mainstream media outlets and online publications.

Disclosure

Ed Bott

Ed Bott is a freelance technical journalist and book author. All work that Ed does is on a contractual basis.

Since 1994, Ed has written more than 25 books about Microsoft Windows and Office. Along with various co-authors, Ed is completely responsible for the content of the books he writes. As a key part of his contractual relationship with publishers, he gives them permission to print and distribute the content he writes and to pay him a royalty based on the actual sales of those books. Ed's books are currently distributed by Que Publishing (a division of Pearson Education) and by Microsoft Press.

On occasion, Ed accepts consulting assignments. In recent years, he has worked as an expert witness in cases where his experience and knowledge of Microsoft and Microsoft Windows have been useful. In each such case, his compensation is on an hourly basis, and he is hired as a witness, not an advocate.

Ed does not own stock or have any other financial interest in Microsoft or any other software company. He owns 500 shares of stock in EMC Corporation, which was purchased before the company's acquisition of VMWare. In addition, he owns 350 shares of stock in Intel Corporation, purchased more than two years ago. All stocks are held in retirement accounts for long-term growth.

Ed does not accept gifts from companies he covers. All hardware products he writes about are purchased with his own funds or are review units covered under formal loan agreements and are returned after the review is complete.

Biography

Ed Bott

Ed Bott is an award-winning technology writer with more than two decades' experience writing for mainstream media outlets and online publications. He's served as editor of the U.S. edition of PC Computing and managing editor of PC World; both publications had monthly paid circulation in excess of 1 million during his tenure. He is the author of more than 25 books on Microsoft Windows and Office, including the recently released Windows 7 Inside Out.

Talkback Most Recent of 74 Talkback(s)

  • Already used the Ultimate Steal . . .
    I've already used the Ultimate Steal to get Office 2007
    long before the 2010 offer started sad.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    CobraA1
    4th May 2010
  • There may be other ways...
    Check with your tech people...my school has an account with e-academy.com, and students can purchase a downloadable version of Office Professional Plus 2010 for about $70.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    jrf2027@...
    4th May 2010
  • Do they have "competitive upgrades" anymore?
    They have had these in the past. But seeing as how most competing products are now free, perhaps they do not exist anymore.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    Michael Kelly
    4th May 2010

  • ZDNet Blogger

    No upgrades at all
    They've eliminated upgrades completely
    ZDNet Gravatar
    Ed Bott
    4th May 2010
  • Was there a reason for that, that you know of?
    Or did they just decide to do it for no good reason?
    ZDNet Gravatar
    Hallowed are the Ori
    4th May 2010

  • ZDNet Blogger

    I don't believe...
    ...that anyone at Microsoft has publicly stated a reason. They haven't discussed with me privately either.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    Ed Bott
    4th May 2010
  • Too many SKUs, high entry cost
    The problem with upgrade pricing is that it artificially raises the price for new customers. Whether it's Microsoft, Adobe, or anyone else, I've always disliked upgrade pricing. While some may see it as a better deal for loyal customers, the hassle of reinstalls (and then fishing out the old CD, or old key, etc.) was too painful (not worth the savings). And since the "first time" price must be higher (to make upgrades seem like a special deal), that higher price discourages new users. Hence competitive upgrades (so now 3 SKUs for essentially the same product...) But if all first-time users are moving from a competitive product, then...everyone is already paying the upgrade pricing...so why bother making a distinction?

    Frankly, who needs MORE SKUs in the mix? I'm happy to see the price list streamlined.

    The exception is making Windows available only as an upgrade SKU in volume licensing--that is likely a mechanism to drive up OEM licensing sales (because OEM prices are, naturally, lower than prices in other channels) and also prevent the sale of PCs without a proper Windows license. But I digress...
    ZDNet Gravatar
    dofzin
    4th May 2010
  • Same old useless deals
    Ed's been peddling this stuff before.

    If you're not a subscriber to TechNet

    If you're not a student

    If you're not part of an enterprise licensing deal

    ...then none of this applies to you. Which I guess would be what? 85% - 90% of the home users out there?
    ZDNet Gravatar
    ubiquitous one
    4th May 2010

  • ZDNet Blogger

    Wrong
    You didn't even read this post.

    The Tech guarantee applies to everyone.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    Ed Bott
    4th May 2010
  • Yes I did, Ed
    Tell me where the deal is. I didn't see any unless you factor in all those conditions I mentioned above.

    I have a 32bit Win7 Ultimate laptop at the moment, with no version of Office on it. How much will it cost me?

    Given that...

    I'm not a subscriber to TechNet

    I'm not currently a student

    I'm not part of an enterprise licensing deal
    ZDNet Gravatar
    ubiquitous one
    4th May 2010
  • Well no upgrade deals for
    existing users, MSFT has lost my personal business indefinitely. The more they want to screw over the individual user the more attractive option is to give them the finger and go elsewhere. OpenOffice or Google Docs is looking pretty good.

    Thank you MSFT for making my decision to spend money elsewhere other than on your products.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    Snooki_smoosh_smoosh
    4th May 2010
  • That depends
    If the new pricing is in line with the old upgrade prices, then there is nothing to complain about.

    And of course I ignore "suggested retail pricing" because that's just MS's way of throwing a bone to retailers who like to "discount". If I paid $200 for something before and I pay $200 now, that's good enough for me.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    Michael Kelly
    4th May 2010
  • You'll have a tough time..
    ..being able to entirely do that, thanks to vendor lock-in.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    ubiquitous one
    4th May 2010
  • Insane prices for less productivity
    The 2007 and 2010 versions are productivity disasters.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    itguy08
    4th May 2010
  • Maybe for you
    But I along with many others find that things are done easier and faster in 2007 and I am running 2010 now and I find it just as easy to use. There are a couple tasks that may be a bit more cumbersome but overall much better than the old school hunt and peck file menus.
    ZDNet Gravatar
    bobiroc
    4th May 2010
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