Saturday, January 25, 2025

Microsoft 365 Price Hike (And How I Avoided It For Now)

On January 17th, I received an email from Microsoft informing me that I would be billed quite a bit more for my monthly subscription to Microsoft 365.

I usually buy an annual sub, but recently chose for the £5.99 a month model. However, that price - for the Microsoft 365 Personal - was set to increase in the next billing cycle. As pointed out in the email.

It was a steep jump moving up to £8.49 a month.

Anyway, I figured there was nothing I could do.

That was until this morning, when I stumbled upon a YouTube video.

Microsoft's price increase has a lot to do with its AI offering - Copilot. It has now been introduced to all of the Office apps I use. But, here's the thing: I have no need for Copilot. When I use my spreadsheets, database and writing, I fly solo. Why should I pay more for something I have no intention of ever using?

So - here's another thing: And this is correct as of the time of writing, there is a way to get your Microsoft subscription back to where it was.

I accessed my account's subscription page and declared my intention to 'Cancel Subscription'. It then leads to a page where you can change your subscription package. The 'downgrade' for me was to choose 'Microsoft 365 Personal Classic' which is EXACTLY what I was paying for in the first place. 

MS is technically upgrading its customers' accounts in a sly way, in my opinion. They're kind of getting away with this as well because, at the bottom of the email, they do offer the customer the option to cancel or switch their description but not informing them of the 'Classic' option. 

I am a prime example of falling for this sleight of hand. I accepted that my subscription was going up and did not take into account the options to cancel (I need Office apps) or to switch subscription (I was under the impression I was on the lowest subscription level).

Microsoft should have been more transparent in the email, don't you think?

Microsoft Email

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